Monday, February 15, 2010

Trav'lin' Light



This has been one hectic month! I mentioned before about all the traveling I'm doing for work. I still have one more conference next week. And being in Baltimore with all of the snow was interesting. I've never seen that much snow! Even when it wasn't actually snowing, the wind blew the top layer so hard that it was like getting your face sandblasted! Needless to say, the conference goers were pretty much snowed into the hotel when workshops weren't going on. However, Gaylord National is huge with several restaurants and things to do, so we weren't bored. 


I managed to pack everything into two carry-on bags like I wanted so I was trav'lin' light!


In addition to traveling, the grant that I administer ends this month, so I am in charge of encumbering all funds by the 26th that we plan to expend. The local government is the fiscal agent, so there is all kinds of red tape in order to make it happen, plus all the documentation. STRESS! But I'm still making time to be creative.


Even though I like my February BJP, it feels too safe. I'm on the edge of a creative epiphany, but I don't know what it will take to push me over. Maybe when I can slow down at work next month, it will hit me.


I am so glad I chose a smaller canvas this time around!



Wednesday, February 3, 2010

February Theme

After all the snow this past weekend and the snow that's predicted for this weekend, I am soooo ready for spring. I like cool weather, but I'm more of a Fall or Spring girl. Winter is not my thing. So this month's theme is partly about being ready for next season...


I'm attending 3 conferences over the next few weeks - two next week and one the last week of the month. Who goes to two conferences in one week? I hate checking luggage, so I have to pack enough into the carry-on so that I have what I need, but I don't go over the weight limit. And I need a big enough "purse" to carry all my other stuff. So I guess I'll be travelin' light!

Unlocking My Creativity



I've been collecting keys for no reason for the last year or so. When I change a lock or get a new "art" key, I keep the old ones in my scrap craft drawer. I've kept other people's keys when they were going to get rid of them. At work, there was a whole box of leftover keys from doors, cars, bikes and other things and I went through them to find odd shaped or odd sized keys and put them in my collection as well!


Well, I have found a use for them. They are the basis for my theme for the year: unlocking my creativity. Each month I will have a theme that deals with "the key" to some lesson I'm learning or "unlocking" something I need to let go of and I'm going to use at least one of the keys I've been racking up.


January's theme is the same as the overall year: unlocking my creativity and I used a master key. 


Last year I chose the size of a cd. It ended up being too much and I didn't finish. I decided I like the circle shape, but this year they are just under 4 inches across. I think I can handle that! I like to use a lot of seed beads, so I need to go smaller if this is going to be fun and not just one more thing on my "to do" list.