Just Say Yes!

It was a Tuesday of  Firsts because I was saying yes. I'm trying to say more Yes and less No.

I usually take the easiest route to my Cardio/weight exercise class. But after reading Younger Next Year, my inner-self was telling me that I needed to step up to the plate and do some serious aerobic work. Finally I said to that aggravating inner-self, yes, okay, I'll do it. So Tuesday morning I walked from the bottom of Pila Seca to Salida a Queretaro. That worked up a sweat and got the old heart pounding. So I did it again on Wednesday and Thursday. I'm taking a break today.

I had some friends who asked me if I'd like to learn to play Mah Jong. Other than knowing it was a game and having read a novel or two where the women played Mah Jong, I didn't know a thing about it. But I said yes. Oh my! I think bridge is simplier. I had a good time and I'll be taking some more lessons until either my friends get tired of trying to teach the game to me or I am able to figure it out and play with a group of women who meet weekly. I'm not putting any money on which will happen first but if you are a gambler you will probably want to put your money on the friends throwing in the towel.

My last first and yes was on Tuesday night when I joined a life drawing group. You know I've told you before I'm not very good at sketching but I like to do it and I really like drawing from a live model. Henry Vermillion hosts the group but there is no instruction. It is just an opportunity to sketch. I loved it. I might even take some sketching classes. Surely I can do better.

Tuesday was a very busy but very satisfying day. I need to remember, just say yes more often.

The Workshop

Well I warned you that I couldn't draw....no, no. I think I should use sketch, not draw. Sketch sounds much more artisty. But regardless, I did warn you here that I was going to take a workshop on making artist journals. Well the workshop was this week. I had so much fun, even though my sketching isn't any better. I should have been embarrassed. There were some real artists in the workshop but what the hell. I wanted to do it and if I don't do it now, when might I do it? There will always be real artists in art workshops. So what if they think I could use some art classes. They are right but I refuse to let that take away my joy in the doing.

 

Susan Dorf was a great workshop leader. She made everyone feel safe about reading and showing what they were doing. She showed a bunch of her own sketchbooks and also some books about artist journals. She gave a bit of technical information but mostly it was about seeing and connecting and being able to put that in a sketch as well as words.

 

Doing photography and doing a sketch and journaling are similar but, to me, it seems to provide a different emotional experience. I'll just have to do some more in My Artist's Journal and see what happens. It could morph into some combination of Photoshop, digital paint program and words. Yesterday, I told an artist friend about the workshop and how I thought I might end up using it. She said, "Let 'er rip. Go for it."

 

This sketch was the first one we did in the workshop. We were told to spread out and find something. I loved the clump of purses sitting at the bottom of the steps and chose to sketch them. I didn't have the technical skills to really execute it but to me it is a lovely momento of the workshop.