Night Tremors
5AM

I'm pretty sure I've been awake since 3-ish, my hand tingling into numbness.  This hasn't happened for a while, but does periodically and I'm not sure why.

In the past I've gotten up and exercised my afflicted part in order to get the circulation moving.  This time, being too tired or too lazy, I used my numb hand to massage my neck, to the benefit of both.

Then my awakened brain got into the act.  I remembered a small wooden roller that I have in a box of wooden shapes, set aside to glue words and quotes to, that I enjoy using in my art.

Soon I found it and began using it to roll my cramped and sore neck muscles.  Alas. Relief. I then rubbed on a little Tei-Fu cream(Nature's Sunshine Products) and was feeling right much better. ("Right much" is a term I learned from my Estes Park Scottish friends.  Sometimes it helps me to say just what I need to.)

With my mind wandering, after all the thinking and rubbing, I began writing this post in my head.  Words just came tumbling out.  Nothing could be done for it but to get out of bed, again, and put my wandering words down before I forgot them.

So here I sit in the soft glow of my computer, writing and sipping a warm milky drink ala Ms. Marple.  This simple sleep remedy consists of milk, vanilla and sweetener which is heated and then topped with a sprinkle of nutmeg.

Yumm.

Now if I could only figure out how to use spell-check.

The smallest flame reflected in possibility

Illuminates and magnifies

Spreads light and hope

Beyond all imaginings-

Sometimes it takes writing things down to enable me to see what is right in front of my face. This week, in writing to others how long I've been home (6 months!) and what I haven't gotten done, (not everything) I realized I needed heap big help.

As my morning studio ritual I light my Our Lady of Guadalupe candle.  When I spied the St Michael candle in my husbands wood shop, I knew I needed his help. I borrowed the candle lit it, and put my gentle Guad aside for a while.

Before I knew it I had cleaned up and out my writing corner, which I had been "saving" for a cold winter day when I FELT like writing.  I found four copies of Josie I, edited by four different people, my first and as yet unpublished novel, many cool and empty notebooks ready to be filled and inspiration notes from the many mystery novels I have read over at least the past decade!

Michael, welcome to my studio.  I need your powerful, healing energy by my side.

and thank you.

Under the giant oak
sits the shell of a once wise woman.
She can feel within the spark of the woman
She is again becoming.

Alleluia

I recently took a 3 day workshop with Liz Hill who lives in the Woodlands, north of Houston.  She came here to teach her remarkable techniques of drawing the figure with charcoal and then painting with watecolour.

It made me recall many drawing classes with Elmore Morgan Jr. My figures came out pretty good but my faces leave a lot to be desired. As it is my desire to create a series of female figures with mythological and spiritual meaning, I have been drawing and drawing and drawing.

 

You can visit Liz's art and ours from the class at her website, LizHill.com.

Above is a piece of art I sold a couple of years ago. I recently went through the large pile of wooden foundry objects that I was given when I worked at River Oaks Square in Alexandria Louiaiana. I found a couple of large pieces with which to make more shrines in this fashion. FUN!