Rhythm of Life

My friend Jessica had her final art show on December 12. She called her show "Rhythm of Life" and I wish I had a video of Jessica's artist's talk because she said some really profound things that make viewing the art that much better.
My favorite quote from her talk:
"The blank canvas knows me better than anyone."

In lieu of a video, I'll put some excerpts from her artist's statement:

"My artwork is centered on my faith, which is the core of my life. I express a passion for life; it affirms a truth I find in nature and life itself."

"I like the freedom of expressing oneself with abstract thoughts, but using concrete feelings, thus, I feel compelled to act out on what evokes those feelings through my works of art. Early practitioners of expressionism and abstraction wanted art to become more like music; I share this view, and as such, I paint to a personal rhythm conveying the suggestion of the “rhythm of life” as I see it."

"I love the way paint moves on the canvas and how one color unites with another. Using strong brush strokes, higher energy and vivid colors, I express emotions that have moved me. The scale of the pieces is necessary to articulate the overwhelming power of these emotions and the natural world around us. Paint goes from edge-to-edge continuing beyond the border, leaving you with a sense of never ending possibilities that are before us. Trusting in a higher power is paramount in the conceptual process that goes beyond feelings, thoughts and experiences. In every painting I reveal my life and the lives around me…The Rhythm of Life."









These were some of my favorites. They depicted the four seasons and stood well over seven feet high. Challenge: decide which season is which. Jessica never did tell us which was which - how abstract!







I repeat: "The scale of the pieces is necessary to articulate the overwhelming power of these emotions and the natural world around us."









The whole show was beautiful and knowing all the work that went into it made me appreciate it even more.

It was also fun to see my friends again!



If you'd like to see the show for yourself and you're in Fargo, go to the NDSU Memorial Union Gallery. It will be up through January.

Happy Cyber Monday

There is a perk to living in the middle of nowhere - shopping from the comfort of the office and not feeling guilty about shipping....because it's Cyber Monday and because it would cost me that much in gas to get to a shopping mecca with as many options as Amazon.
I'm enjoying seeing my order confirmations roll into my email inbox and checking the tracking numbers to see the various stops that my packages are making on their way to Cando.
I lamented not living near a Target when we first moved here; I may have found a suitable replacement...at least for holiday shopping.

In other condo news: Bryan bought a replacement paper shredder. He broke the first one after trying to put too many papers through. He did try really hard to fix it, but it was a goner. He brought the new one home, placed it on the counter and proclaimed, "Deuce!" Struck me funny. He's much more conservative with the allotment of paper he puts through deuce.

Bliss on Film

I caught Bryan in a state of pure joy this evening - his new spotting scope came. Note how wrapped up he was with his new contraption.

Mission: Failed

As a teacher of writing (aka English teacher, but doesn't that sound better?) I think it's important that I write. I never envisioned myself as a novel writer, but when I stumbled upon a site called nanowrimo.org (NAtional NOvel WRIting MOnth) that challenged writers to write a 50,000 word novel during the month of November, I saw myself as a novelist for the first time.


What I have learned: There's a LOT of words between 1 and 50,000 AND a big difference between someone who simply wants to write a novel and someone who actually does.

Someone who simply wants to write a novel will:
...award herself with a chip and salsa after every 20 words.
...spend more time formatting the titles of her chapters than actually writing the content of the chapters. (okay, honestly, chapter....not chapterS)
...think repeatedly, "The word 'novel' is daunting. Is writing several novellas cheating?"

I'm convinced someone who writes a novel does simply that - forces herself to sit and write.

I'm considering this mission sadly a failure because I sit with a Draft 1 that contains 3,500 words and I have 12 days left in November. I have to write roughly 3900 words each day to make it.



Maybe if I stopped wasting so many words blogging I could get it done...

Hunting

I always envisioned myself as the person who was going to like deer hunting season because it meant I could be alone in the house or I could take a day trip somewhere. This year, I actually partook in the festivities.

Evidence:


Bryan wasn't successful today, though. He has a buck tag and all we saw were does.


Grammar note: I did some checking on "partook" and it is a word.

Coach

I've been very consumed lately with volleyball...as I was recently named the head coach. The REAL head coach is Canadian and had a little problem with his Visa a few weeks ago which led to him stepping down and me stepping up. I have a whole new respect for coaches of all kinds and though it's fun to make the big decisions I miss the days of simply telling the head coach how many time outs are left and answering the question, "Can I go to the bathroom?" during huddles.

My new Coach tennis shoes are getting a lot of wear, though.

What a great guy

After coaching in a small town last year where you really don't know anybody, I realized how important it was to have one fan there that you know. Bryan is my one fan and I couldn't be more grateful. He is the med bag carrier, the water getter, the after game synopsis listener and the patiently waiting driver while we calculate stats. I think coaching is good for our marriage.