Smarter than a plastic box: Poika got the catnip out two days in a row.

Lempi can tell time

The Adventures of Flash Meridian.

Today my son and I went out and did some rubbings of historical markers near my house. I brought along a few different art supplies to try, since I had never done this before. Hard compressed charcoal worked best for me today. The paper was an old roll of exam table paper that my dad gave me last July.

My grandfather used to make rubbings on his travels, and they had some of these displayed in their home.

I’m practicing for when I visit the graves of my ancestors.

In the meantime, I’m enjoying this new way to make art out of words.

Everything is subject to change, and that is certainly the case with artistic projects. I may have an idea about the finished product in my head before I start, but the end result will not be a duplicate of that. There are so many variables and surprises along the way. Flexibility is key.

When I set out on a road trip, I don’t know what detours, traffic conditions, animals, mechanical problems or physical factors I will encounter along the route. I need to adapt. It is the same in art, and pretty much everything in life.

My survival often hinges on a change of plans. This is not failure, it is an opportunity to learn and succeed.

Inspiration can come from anywhere if I am open to receive it.

I have this idea to start a group for artists. I’ve gone to artist’s meetings before. I want mine to be very different. Not formal, and with no obligation. Just creative people getting together. This could happen around a bonfire, or just lounging in patio chairs on a deck. We might talk about art. We probably would. But it wouldn’t be a necessity. We might look at work, but maybe not. We might create something together, just having fun, and collaborating in some medium that we might not usually use.

I had the same idea about an unstructured support group for parents. Not stuffy. Not the kind of group where you sit in a circle and wait for someone else to talk. Just parents, getting together. Talking about parenting if they need to, but mostly just being there for each other and having fun.

We don’t always need a sermon or a lesson plan. Sometimes we need to do or just be.

My spiritual and religious self are connected to my creativity. My spiritual part is the invisible part of me that animates my body. Without that, my body would be a corpse. My spiritual part tells my physical part what to do, and as long as the body is able to obey those commands, I will create art.

The religious part is the part I fight against. It creates conflict, and that is a vital component in storytelling. You see, I don’t have friendly thoughts about religion. Does this offend you? I don’t mind. I’m happy for my parents’ faith. It has been a source of comfort and meaning for them. What a wonderful thing. For them!

This conflict has always driven my art. It’s been a tug of war, and the pull has shifted back and forth through various stages of my life.

A lot of it comes down to definitions. Semantics.

If you think you’ve got it all nailed down, I’m pretty sure you have missed the mark. That is none of my business. I wish you well!

I was taught to act like I believed something even if I didn’t, and that eventually I would come to believe it.

If something didn’t make any sense, I was to accept it by faith.

Oh no.

No, no, no.