Creative surge

The weeks leading up to Christmas were a frenzy of glass, flux and solder as I tried to keep up with orders for leaded glass snowflakes. I made 27 snowflakes this year, compared to 11 last year. This meant going into debt for a time, after buying supplies and waiting for people to pay me. (I might do things a little differently next year.)

I really love making unique glass creations, but the pressure of cranking them out en masse this year got to me a bit. I was happy with each of the snowflakes I made, but at points it felt more like a burden than an enjoyable creative experience, especially when debt entered the picture.

But now that the frenzy has subsided, the debt is gone and I have a whole week off (thanks to the generosity of my employer!), I have been experiencing a renewed sense of creativity, purely for the fun of it.

I put together a piece made of tiny glass scraps left over from a Christmas commission. They were too small and plentiful to foil and solder, so I glued them together. The entire piece is roughly 5x7. (I still need to clean it up and put a frame around it.)

The other night, I spent some time doodling, which I haven't done in months. I have a dozen or so doodles similar to this one. I had forgotten how relaxing it is to just lose myself in a doodle!

I've also gotten back to my harp, which has been woefully neglected since the Sanders show ended. Robb and my poor neighbor downstairs had to listen to me tune it for about an hour. (Sorry guys!)

Yesterday, I started working on a glass piece that has been in the "pattern state" for going on a couple years now. I really love this design and have a hunch that maybe some others will too... so I'll probably be making it a few times over. But I just might keep the first iteration for myself.

After all the pre-holiday artistic mass production, I'm somewhat relieved to know that my creative spark still exists. In addition to the poppies project, I plan to do some baking this week, and maybe a drawing.

I guess I'll be finishing out 2010 with a surge of creativity -- and ringing in 2011 the same way!

Random miscellany

Nothing much to write about but feeling the urge to write. Trying to keep as still as possible directly under the ceiling fan which is on high because I'm resisting the urge to turn on the A/C in the FIRST WEEK OF APRIL. Oh, Richmond.

Does anyone else think the pollen is out of control this spring?? My red car is now a kind of yellow color. And my nose and eyes are a kind of red color. Kind of like that red bar in the graph to the left -- if you can't read it, today Richmond's pollen count was at an 11.4 on a 12 point scale. AHHH-CHOOOO Looks like we might get a little relief tomorrow.

The period key on my laptop keyboard came off a few weeks ago. For awhile I was able to press the little raised plastic thingy and it would work. It doesn't anymore. So how am I typing all these "." you ask? I copy and paste them each time. I'm kind of getting used to it. Also, my laptop is having an issue with its power source. This same problem happened about a year and a half ago. It got to the point where the A/C (different A/C) connection that the cord plugs into in the back of the computer somehow got separated from the motherboard (or something) and subsequently wouldn't charge the battery. A year and a half ago my computer was still under warranty so the nice Dell repairman came to my home to fix it.  The computer is no longer under warranty, and I'm having the same problem. It's kind of a slow computer death. Wiggling the cord helps for awhile, but eventually the motherboard connection will break completely, then the screen will go dim, then completely dark (cue Chopin's Funeral March). The hard drive is also nearing capacity, not to mention laboring to work, and the poor thing takes about 10 minutes just to start up. All this is to say that, while she's given me a good run (got 'er in aught-6), it's time to start shopping for a new laptop.

I am also shopping for a new home. My landlords next door have put their house (at left) up for sale because they are moving to the West End (in my landlord's words, "the land of plastic menus and nightmares of Cheesecake Factory") so their son can go to a good middle school. They don't really want to move there but are doing so because of their son's education. What a shame that they have to leave the city for that to happen. So, since I've been saying for awhile now that I want a bigger place, I put in my notice that I will be vacating in a few months. I really have enjoyed living in my charming little 1BR Fan apartment. But it's time to move on up (probably not to the East side though... hoping for the Museum District).

I'm flying to Minnesota in a few weeks for my best friend's son's baptism. I've been asked to be his godmother. I'm a newbie in this role so I hope I don't screw up. I'm really looking forward to meeting him. He was born about 6 weeks early and is now a handsome little heartbreaker.

A Grand Night for Singing at Swift Creek Mill is going splendidly. I have contemplated renting a harp of my own so that I can keep my fingers nimble over the summer until rehearsals start for Smoke on the Mountain Homecoming... and maybe get a wedding gig or two while I'm at it. A decent lever harp rental (like the Lyon & Healy Ogden model at right) from Virginia Harp Center is under $100/mo.

Hm..... a new computer, a new place to live, a godson, a harp, and a pay cut at work. This will be an interesting next few weeks!

A Grand Night for Star Trek XII

So I'm playing the harp in Rodgers & Hammerstein's A Grand Night for Singing at Swift Creek Mill Theatre in Colonial Heights. I got the music about ten days ago, got a harp to practice on last Tuesday, have participated in four rehearsals and the show opens the day after tomorrow. And just like that, I go from a nine-to-five nonprofit fundraiser to a sleep-deprived gigging musician.

COOL!

I have a tendency toward being a night owl so the late nights don't really bother me.... it's that pesky day job thingy that requires I leave my cozy bed by 8:00 if I'm gonna make it to the office by 9:00. To the parents who are reading this, yes, I know how sleep deprived you all are and I fully recognize that I have no idea what "tired" really, truly is. But, if anyone can appreciate functioning in a bleary-eyed semi-conscious state, it's actors and musicians. (And folks who work the night shift... had to give props to my Robbie.)

Most actors and musicians -- at least in Richmond -- have to hold daytime employment in order to pay the bills. But I've never really heard anyone complain about it... that's just how it is. By no stretch do I consider myself a professional the likes of Audra and Scottie and Sandy and Paul and countless other pals who secure a steady stream of work by putting their acting and musical talents to work on a regular basis. But I am fortunate to get called upon to fill the occasional niche (say, for a harp), and that makes me perfectly happy.

So while I am and will be "So Very Tired" the next eight weeks, I will be enjoying every minute that I get to pursue my true passion for creative expression during the twilight hours with amazingly talented people. If you get a chance to see A Grand Night for Singing, please do. It's two glorious hours of song, dance and witty repartee. The next morning might come a little bit too soon, but it'll be worth it, I promise!