52CP09: Start Now

So, it's not quite as late as I thought I might be! I try to schedule the challenge to post at midnight (my time), and it's just after noon, so not too bad...

This week's challenge is - again - based on events in My Life. Those who follow my other blog know that I've been dithering for months - if not years - about a career change, figuring out what I want to be when I grow up, etc., etc. They also know - and I'm sure you all have figured out - that time has a tendency to get away from me, and my intentions don't always come to fruition as a result. This is a long-standing issue with me. In fifth and sixth grade I was intelligent enough to be in a pilot program for accelerated students that our school district was testing, but I consistently got "B" and "C" marks on essays, etc., because I turned them in late. If I had a nickel for every time a teacher told me, "This would have been an "A" if you'd turned it in on time", I'd have been a rich young girl, for sure! And the trend continues...

I've been mulling over the whole procrastination issue and what stops me from just moving ahead and, while I still don't have solid answers, I have a couple of helpful tidbits that I'm sharing with you for our challenge:

I came across this quote a week or two ago, and it made me think - again - about the possible "why" behind my action (or, more accurately here, my inaction):

We should be taught not to wait for inspiration to start a thing. Action always generates inspiration. Inspiration seldom generates action.

- Frank Tibolt

I also thought that it would be helpful to have a reminder in my space that I need to plow ahead, regardless of any doubts or hesitations I may have, so I altered a luggage tag (I thought it a fitting metaphor) to put on my "inspiration board", which is a project in the works that I will share a different day when it's complete. Here it is:

I purposely kept it simple, because I wanted it to be something that would be a quick glance-and-be-reminded thing. Here's a better look at the stamped images:

The bird reminds me to soar, the red stamp reminds me what I want to be about, and the black stamp with the gold behind it is the main reason I made this (also the reason I bought this particular stamp set, but that's a different story). The words behind everything say "because you're worth it", to remind me that forging ahead with what I want to do and becoming what I want to be is what I deserve! I also added a clock charm to remind me that time is of the essence, and not something to be squandered and/or wasted:

It is - fittingly - from K & Co's "Life's Journey" collection... I sanded a white mini binder clip and wiped it with some gold to make it more closely match the charm.

Other deets: the tag is from JoAnn's $1 bin, the stamps are from K & Co Madeline (red), Heidi Grace Cherrywood Ln (green), Close to My Heart Vintage Postcard (blue, gray, and black), Inkadinkado Flourishes (bird) and "because you're worth it" from a single Inka stamp.

And that's my story! Something along the lines of the old Nike ads: "Just do it" (swoosh)! Here's Mr. Linky so you can share your fab creations:

52CP08 Featured Artists

Maybe there's hope for us yet - there are a few players this week, and a double dose from one of them! Deena made this adorable card (definitely a unique perspective here):

Deena #1

And then she made another beautiful card with a completely different point of view:

Deena #2

Beverly joined us again with another of her beautiful creations (check the link to see the equally cool inside of the card):

Beverly

And Tina was able to join us this week, too! Here's her oh-so-pretty card:

Tina

And there you have them! This week's challenge will be posted a bit late, as things got seriously thrown off schedule this weekend and I'm seriously tired! I will have the inspiration AND the artwork, though - promise! See you sometime tomorrow!

If Brains Were Dynamite...

...I couldn't blow my nose! I'm cruisin' through my week, chatting with Sherry on the phone, and we get on the subject of this blog. Then it hits me upside my Odd Brain - I haven't posted my ATC for this week's challenge! DOH!!! I'm so sorry! Here it is:

I went looking for a digital stamp of a kid upside-down like this but was unsuccessful, so I sketched out my own... Good thing this is an ATC so I could draw small - I have trouble keeping proportions and such when things get bigger, for some reason! A little coloring with Bic and Prismacolor markers, a little stitching on the machine, a little scribbling with a journaling marker...all she wrote! I hope you all are coming up with something to share, too! Have a great rest-of-the-week (Hump Day - hooray!), and I'll see you this weekend! Ta!

52CP08: Perspective

This week's post is a bit different, driven by the goings-on in the World of Sue. I'm sharing two of my favorite poems that I've saved that I think are of great worth for those going through a hard time for various reasons, and most especially those grieving the loss of a loved one. My sister's boyfriend has a very, very close circle of friends (they've known each other for forty years), and one of the women committed suicide Thursday night while her husband was out of town (yes, that's what he came home to) and the entire group is reeling, needless to say. I've been finding things to send to my sister and decided it was a good multi-tasking opportunity to apply here, as well. I'm not going to post artwork of any kind with these bits of wisdom - just let them speak to you however they do, and go from there...

POINT OF VIEW

Sun and mountain meet.
"Look," I say.
"Sunset!"

But I forget
That far away
An islander
Wipes morning
From his eyes
And watches
The same sun
Rise.

What's birth?
And death?
What's near
Or far?
It all depends
On where you are.

~ Carol Lynn Pearson

GOD SPEAKS

Death is ugly?
Oh, my children,
No.

If you knew
The beauty
That begins where
Your sight fails,
You would run,
Run, run,
And leap
With open arms
Into eternity.

But sad
Is a harvest
Of green wheat.

And,
So you would
Feverishly
Cling to earth
And finish
Your mortal task,
I merely gave
Death
An ugly mask.

~ Carol Lynn Pearson

I will post my creation later this afternoon or tomorrow sometime. Understand that this challenge is NOT limited to grieving/death/etc. - it can be broadened to include anything that could use a different perspective than the one that stops us in our tracks, or just causes us frustration...

Here's Mr. Linky:

52CP07 Featured Artist

Apparently last week's inspiration was quite the stumper - only one player! Steph made this amazing card:

Pretty cool, eh? Okay - tomorrow's post will hopefully be an easier one to come up with something for (I really should learn the proper grammar for that last sentence...) See you then!

52CP07: Five for Fighting

I've seen two versions of the video for this week's inspiration - the "regular" music video, and a version made to raise awareness for autism. HERE's the link for the "regular" one, and HERE'S the link for the autism one. Watch either - or both - to provide inspiration for this week!

I viewed this as a "call to arms" of sorts to improve the world - or at least our corner of it - and found this quote that reinforces that idea:

I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do
something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can
do.

~ Edward Everett Hale

For my project this week, I completed a few things I'd been mulling over but hadn't quite gotten around to:

What you're looking at here are several eco-friendly items. The beige thing is a "bag" to hold plastic bags from the grocery store that I re-purpose as waste basket liners in my kitchen. It has an elasticized top opening and bottom opening and a loop for hanging. You stuff the bags into the top as you acquire them, and pull them out from the bottom as you need them. It will hang inside my pantry.

The black thing is one of those draft stoppers that "slide onto any door" like you see on TV. I made it with some fabric I had hanging around and those insulating tubey things that you're supposed to wrap around pipes to keep them from freezing. It's going on the door that goes down to the basement because the girl that lived here before us lopped off about 2" at the bottom of the door, and all the cold air from the basement comes up, and all the warm air from our house goes down. This will hopefully solve that problem.

The little colorful thing is a re-purposed almond can. I needed a place to put dead batteries until I have enough to make it worthwhile to take them to a place that will recycle them or ecologically dispose of them or whatever it is they do (all I know is it's illegal to just throw them in the trash to go into a landfill). Here's a better look at that:

I used papers from Stampin'Up!'s "Good Morning Sunshine" paper pack, and stamps from The Paper Company Studio's "Eco-Friendly" stamp set. The ribbon is from Michael's. And there you have it! Here's Mr. Linky:

52CP06 Featured Artists

We had a couple of players this week (thank you!), and here are their wonderful creations:

Dorothy



Beverly

See you tomorrow for our next challenge!

At Last...

I should've known better than to promise I'd do anything on a Monday - they're notoriously bad days to do anything on my list! Mondays always seem to be trouble-shooting, chasing types of days, and yesterday was no different. I did manage to get my project finished and photographed, so here you go:

I love the quote, "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye", so I made a little hanging thing in the colors I'm incorporating into my creative space using said quote, and I also love the concept of "being responsible for {my} rose", so my ATC incorporates that. Here are shots of each individually:

The paper rose on the ATC actually matches in real life - the camera didn't like it, apparently... I used Stampin'Up!'s Bella Rose papers for both, along with Nestabilities and computer-generated sentiments.

Okay - that's my contribution this week! I hope you're all playing along, too, but just haven't linked up yet! The Mr. Linky is in this post. Have a great night, and thanks for stopping by!

52CP06: The Little Prince

"The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint Exupery is one of my all-time favorite books, and our inspiration this week is one of the chapters from it. I found a site online that has the entire book available to read, so if you enjoy this chapter, you may want to check out the rest of the book! Basically, the Little Prince travels the solar system from his own tiny planet, leaving behind his beloved Rose, and visits Earth as part of his travels. That's all the backstory you need for the chapter to make sense. You can read it HERE. I'm not sure which page it will link you to, but you want Chapter 21, if you have to choose.

I spent the last three days digging out my creative space, which is also my work space, and that included from about 5:30 this morning until 10:30 tonight, so I'm too tired to finish my project now that I've made space to work. I'll finish it tomorrow afternoon and post it, I promise! Just in case, though, here's this week's Mr. Linky (edited to add - please remember to use tag/label 52CP06 when you upload to SCS or another online gallery - thanks!):

52CP05 Featured Artist

So - we had ONE sole player this week! Beverly made this adorable card:

If I give you all hugs, am I forgiven? On to a better week, right? Back in a bit with new inspiration for you!

Irony

I guess it's true that you get what you intend, whether it's conscious or subconscious - my week has borne out the "mistake" inspiration with a vengeance! I've made many of them, and have been paying for them dearly. Unfortunately, you've indirectly had to pay for them, too - I'm so sorry!

Just so you don't think I'm a total and complete slacker, I offer the following as evidence that I didn't just sit and eat bonbons all week (I'm not sure I even know what a bonbon is, actually):

This is one place setting in a set of four - accompanied by a platter - that I etched as a birthday gift for my friend Jackie last Saturday when I woulda/shoulda been doing my inspiration project. I would have done this earlier in the week, but couldn't find the pieces I needed to etch until Friday. It also took me longer to execute the project than I scheduled for it because - oh yeah - mistakes galore! I even made a mistake taking the picture on my way out the door to the party! See that little sticker marking the center of the plate for me? Yeah, forgot to remove it to take the pic, and I even wrapped it up with the sticker still on it!

This is: a) an invoice for a partial work week, sans pricing and with my phone number blocked out - there was more, but this is all I printed; b) a paint stirring stick that I was attempting to create a "Listen and Learn" thingie to hang up in my workroom. I dug out my woodburning tool that I haven't used for decades to give it a go. That was your first clue as to why the darn thing never got finished - not as easy as I remembered, much more time-consuming, and I lost patience and mojo and ran out of paint stirring sticks before I got anything even remotely worthy to share...

Greg was home most of the week, which always throws my schedule WAY off (How does this happen? He doesn't expect me to entertain him and he finds things to do, but somehow I seem to hear "Can you come here a minute?" quite a bit during the day...) Add in two doctor appointments (one for my father-in-law and one for me) and a bout of pinkeye (why I had a doctor appointment), and you have my week in a nutshell! Like I said - MANY mistakes were made, and MANY trains were derailed! Did I learn anything? You betcha! (with a nod to Caribou Barbie):

• Plan - and execute - farther ahead in case things don't go as planned
• I need waaaay more practice with my woodburning tool
• If I'm not going to be able to get my project posted, I should at least have the consideration to post Mr. Linky for those of you who want to post yours
• I need to invest some time in getting more organized
• I need to get a bit more disciplined

I'm sure there are more lessons learned this week, but that's enough to share for now, yes? When I fired up the computer this morning to post this, I saw that Beverly had added a comment and a link to her project, so I'm starting off the Mr. Linky with hers, and if any of you were more on the ball than me this week and created something, please feel free to share! I'll check back later this afternoon to do the "Featured Artists" dealie-o, and I'm well on my way to being on schedule for tomorrow's post, so check back, k?

Thanks for putting up with my learning curve on doing a weekly challenge - I promise my most excellent promise that I will do my darndest to be more consistent! Have a great day!