My creative life

When I was sixteen a friend of my parents took me on to give me painting lessons.  I do not think it was a long time, but I did love doing it and everyone said it was wonderful.   I think my daughter has the painting of Anne Hathway's  cottage.  I was doing college prep in High School. So I never took art classes, for one thing I thought all the people in art class were stupid and or not cool.

When I went to college I studied first Home Ec, and then Apparel  Merchandising.   There were always design classes or creative classes like clothes  design.  I thought at the time that I could be a clothes designer, but I was too interested in men and my soon to be husband.  In some ways college was wasted on me, and in other ways  I got a back ground for life long interests in other areas.

I left college and went to work at he University of California Berkeley, and then was only time I worked.  We, Micheal and I had three girls and that was my job.  But I was always creative.

I was subject to depression and anxiety.  I desperately needed creativity.  I tried many things including, sewing (I did a lot of that) for myself and my girls.  I always wanted to sell something and make a buck.  I thought my girls clothes were terrific and they, especially in the later years, did not think so.   I tried painting and did okay, some nice, but all the time I wondered where my next painting would come and I felt a fraud and a little of a wannabe.  I tried writing and got through a first draft of a short novel.  There I really felt a fraud and I did not know how to keep a "voice".  I went through many phase of knitting and I did some pretty nice sweaters, actually a few fabulous.  I did design children's sweater and tried to sell them.  I did not do well at that.  This included most work on a knitting machine.  Hand  knitting was slow, but it was always a good friend to return to.  I do not knit now because my finger gets out of joint.

Six years ago I started a blog thinking it would be the shortest blog in history.  But  it still live going through a life of its own of ups and downs  Sometimes I think of it as for my self and other times I mostly think of it for others.  I took Holly Beckers blogging class, and I happened the other night to find a list of those whose blogs I then.  There were few still blogging.  I added photos to my blog usually.But through her class I learned how valuable photos were and I started trying to improve my photography.  Once I started that I never looked back.  I threw myself into photography.  I have my IPhone, my SLR and for Christmas I got a very nice point and shoot for my purse.  This is where I am at the moment.  One of my goals for the year is to print more photos.

My health goes up and down and sideways.  I am not sure my goal is any longer to sell.  I think likely selling is a huge effort that likely I am not ready to put forth.  I am working on Project Life for the first time and I hope that it will promote my photography.

January 16, 2012