will i see you in september?

so, my boyfriend and i have been planning a trip to mexico....the yucatan peninsula...for awhile now. i'm in need of a nice beach vacation, and we both want to spend some time outdoors enjoying the sun!! it's time to relax.... :)

the yucatan is an especially good destination for us right now. first because it's cheap. and second, because i'm incredibly fascinated with the mayan culture that is prevalent there. i want to see chichen itza, tulum, the cenotes!! and it'd be nice to get there before the year 2012. i worry that the area will lose alot of it's mysticism, in the event that the mayan calendar, predicting the end of the world, proves to be false. on the other hand, if the earth does decide to give up on the human race, i want to have at least experienced the energy of this mysterious place before meeting my demise. either way, i'd like to visit soon...

our goal is september. but i worry... is the end of the world already on the horizon? at least for mexico, the rest of the caribbean, and the southern US? there's oil in the gulf. black blood. how long until it reaches further shores? maybe the mayans were right. animals are dying. eco-systems are dying. and if we, on this planet, are all ONE, as i believe, then we are ALL dying. i hope somebody with the right kind of power finally figures out a way to fix the whole mess. greed ruins everything. the oil spill needs to be a wake-up call, or we're all going to end up ASLEEP! just as the mayans predicted...

i hope mexico is never affected by this catastrophic event. i hope sea turtles lay lots of eggs and many baby turtles make their way to the oceans. i hope dolphins continue to play in their blue home. i hope the cenotes stay crystal clear with their other-worldly beauty. i hope the sandy and rocky shores of the yucatan remain pristine. and i hope i get to visit in september.

if the mayans were wrong, as i hope they were, i plan on visiting many more places before i die. i want to appreciate this planet for all of it's beauty. i want to take care of it and it's inhabitants. i want more people to understand that what we give to this planet is what we get, as a whole earth. everything living is affected by all that surrounds it.

so let's surround this planet (and all that dwell here) with some love and positivity. let's make conscious earth-loving decisions every day. not just for ourselves, but for future generations. it's time to make some changes!! it's time to raise our awareness as a whole!!! it begins with each of us taking responsibility for ourselves. it's time to step out of our bubbles and realize our connectedness. only then will we start to really take care of our planet. we need to see ourselves in each other!! we need to see ourselves in the earth, in the oceans, in the animals with which we coexist. we are all so intricately linked. it's time to recognize this and take actions that resonate with this truth. we need to come together as a whole, if we are ever going to survive!

i hope the yucatan survives.

and i hope to breath in it's energy this fall. :)

the ladybug chair is finished.

and yes.....in case you were wondering......i finished the chair on time! my ladybug chair. the one that took more than four months to complete. no, i didn't spend four months painting it. i just spent about four months procrastinating. and thinking. and changing my mind over and over again as to how i would approach this wooden chair. but finally, i settled....and the battle between my mind and my paintbrush has, at least for now, come to an end.

so yes. the ladybug chair is done, and it's reception was a success.

i delivered the chair to it's recipients on saturday (i had it done on friday, my deadline, but was unable to meet up to make my delivery until the next day). wide eyes and "oh wow"s made me smile!! i said i was nervous that they might not like the chair,

that i didn't think it was what they might have expected. that comment was met with a sincere "it's more than we expected!!", which of course made me happy. they loved my ladybug chair!! and i felt complete. and i was reminded as to why i take on projects like this. because it fills others with delight. and even though i said i was done taking on such projects for other people...i think i might've been mistaken. that moment of exchange made the entire process worth everything. and there will be a little girl named "karalynn grace" who will get to enjoy my efforts for years to come.

i feel blessed that i can give this gift. the woman who commissioned the chair, later told me that i "paint from the heart". what an amazing thing to hear...a simple observation forcing me to reflect and acknowledge that which is indeed true. i am thankful for her words.

ladybugs.

struggling to paint ladybugs. i've had this project for a few months now. a project involving the painting of, or should i say, decorating of a wooden chair for a child. a wooden chair meant to be adorned with ladybugs. that's the motif. ladybugs that i don't want to paint. tiny red bugs with black dots. i think it would've been easier to paint pink ladybugs. but this child's mother hates pink! even though this child is still only a baby. even though, to me, the idea of red and black seems awfully harsh for an individual so delicate and soft. so i actually haven't painted the chair, as one might have predicted. on the contrary, i used some green, some yellow, some orange, some brown. it's an earthy wooden chair. spotted with ladybugs. the red and black kind. i don't believe it's painted as expected....but i do hope the recipients like it. if i ever get it finished.....

my due-date is friday.

i've learned alot about myself, as an artist, by having taken on this project. i'm through with "decorating". meaningless, thoughtless, under-appreciated color placed onto a surface with a steady, predictable hand is no longer fulfilling. hence, i have decided that i can no longer paint what others want me to paint. the time has come for me to claim my talent as my own, so that i can utilize it as it is meant to be utilized. i've known this for awhile now. far too many ideas fly through my mind and are lost. lost because i'm always focusing on what i need to do for other people, instead of harnessing my power to really truly create! i simply don't have the time, energy, or motivation to do anything but pursue my own personal bouts of inspiration, any more. i don't have to paint. but i want to. and what i want to paint comes from visions in my head, brought on by my very own internal and personal processes that only i can interpret. there is much to be expressed, trapped inside this crazy skull. and i'm the best person, or rather, the ONLY person who can create those expressions!

but for now, i still continue to struggle with these ladybugs. i said i'd get this chair finished. and i'm a woman with integrity. so, i'll get it done. somehow. slowly. hopefully by friday....

an introduction.

i've been doing a little thinking regarding the purpose of this blog. my ideas are expanding and growing. and i feel the need to encompass more of myself on these pages.

yes....i am an artist. i always have been. coloring with my crayolas. painting rocks. gluing styrofoam and glitter onto cardboard for miss macey in kindergarten. that's always been me. neat and controlled. talented. always staying within the lines. paying attention to detail. happy in my own little world. creating. playing with the rainbow.

and i've grown up in that world. i've grown up with that identity. stacey jean: artist.

but i'm more than just that. i'm a bohemian for sure. free spirit with a free mind. i thank my dad for that. he allowed me to wear boots in the summertime. and a feather adorned hat with my red strawberry sundress.

i was encouraged to read alot

as a child. books filling my head with ideas, words, feelings, and images. i loved amelia bedelia and miss piggle wiggle. dorie the little witch caught my imagination for sure. and ralph the mouse ran off with it on his little motorcycle. books were my way to escape from a chaotic household growing up. they were a centering force in my life. they still are.

so i guess you could say i'm fairly intelligent. i read alot. i philosophize alot. and i really like to think. i actually have a tendency to overanalyze just about anything. and then i

ponder over whatever it was that i was thinking about just a few more times. i come to conclusions. i learn more. my conclusions change. at least i'm open-minded....though, i can also be stubborn. i pride myself on having looked at an issue objectively and concluding with the "right" stance. i do know what i'm talking about. ;)

for example, let's take an issue like vegetarianism. i am a vegetarian. to me, this is the only way to live.....at least in a country like the united states. we don't need to eat the flesh of another living, breathing, emotional being. there is no reason for me, and no reason for you, to sustain life by creating misery in the lives of so many innocent creatures. vegetarianism is an issue in which you will not sway my opinion. go ahead and try, but i'm not budging. and dont think i'm a softy when it comes to defending myself here. i'm confident we'll be revisiting this issue in future posts.

so yes, i believe in living a life free of violence. a life filled with compassion. a life with a spiritual basis. i believe that there is a divine plan for everything that happens in life. i believe we've all chosen our path. we've chosen our challenges so that we could chose to grow. i believe in past lives. soul groups. and many dimensions.

and this three dimensional world is the one i know best. i love the earth. it is my school. and the people i am closest to are my classmates. we all learn from each other in this world. and i am grateful for all of the experiences i've had on this planet so far. i'm thankful for the people i can call my family, bonded to me by both blood and/or spirit. i'm thankful for my kitties too. tiger and bridget. they love unconditionally. and that's one of the greatest lessons in life.

i'm also thankful for my boyfriend, tom. he's my rock and my best friend. i know life is okay, because he is in my life. and i feel incredibly blessed. it feels wonderful to be in a healthy, loving, balanced, and respectful relationship. i've had bits and pieces of this in the past. now, i feel like something went right (thank you universe!), and all of those pieces decided to coincide so that we both could be happy. together, we're going to take on the world!! soon we will be moving to a new city. and traveling to the sunny beaches and blue waters of mexico, with all of it's mayan splendor!!

yes.... i looooooove to travel. so i plan on reporting about that in this blog as well. :)

so where does this all leave me? i guess you could say i'm an artistic bohemian type who loves animals, reading, and this grand spiritual cosmos. i want to see as much of this planet as possible, and i'll never eat an animal while doing so. i feel blessed. i'm happy. and i want to share it all with you!! my future readers. i also love taking photos.....so i'll be including many. though random and out of order at times, i hope you enjoy what i have to offer!!

offering you peace and many blessings.

goodnight.