Artist's Way Check In - Week Ten

Week 10 Check Ins

I am revisiting week 9 briefly - the section on FEAR really spoke to me and I had to review it again this week. It is fear, of success OR of failure, most often causes that screeching halt to productive endeavors - at least for me that's true. Its way more comfortable to just go along in a rut. I really have to kick myself hard in the posterior to get out of the rut...And there is usually this nasty nagging little voice in the back of my head that voices all sorts of doubts about what I am doing - getting it to shut up is the trick! I am starting to work with the Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain book and I think its probable that the naggy voice is the left side of the brain that just doesn't understand what the right side artist brain is doing (and it hates loosing control to the right side).

Week 10 talks about HOW we find ways to block our creativity. Some of her examples have no relevance to me...I don't drink, don't smoke, don't use drugs...But some are ways I find to block, like eating - circling back around to the fridge and looking in it though you just did that 5 minutes ago and nothing has changed is an avoidance technique - keep telling yourself you are hungry (even if you aren't) and there is nothing to eat and oh woe is me, I gotta eat something before I can work on my project...

I didn't agree with her assessment that competition is spiritual drug and that focusing on competition poisons our well -unless- you truly are using it as a way to stop doing your own creativity because someone else already beat you to 'it'...I think of competition more of a challenge to yourself to get moving..."If they can do it, well then by golly, so could I - after all, they've proved its possible!"

Check In:
1. Did pages 6/7 days...Still haven't gotten around to re-reading what I wrote in earlier days...
2. Artist Date this week was to go to a book signing by a famous author (I can't say who it was because the book is a gift, until after the gifting is done). I had never gone to a book signing before. This author is a bit controversial (though I love listening to the radio program put on by the author) - there were several burly dudes on each side of the author just in case! The store passed out wristbands with numbers on them, you had to line up in order of your wristband number. It was interesting chatting with some of the other ladies (the majority of the people in line were ladies, a couple of guys but mostly middle age ladies!)
3. Syncronicity - My DH had some interesting syncronicity - got a notice for some software updates that were just what was needed...
Went to shop at Joann's near my parents house for a quilting hoop (to practise the new 'metal to metal' quilting technique I learned from Jean Brown last week) and the Joann's had closed its doors!(Its a brand new shiney scrapbooking store now - cute stuff but no hoops!) So I went over to Michaels...They had the hoop I wanted, at a lesser price, they took the Joann's 40% off coupon that I was hoping to use, and I used my Christmas gift card to buy it so it turned out to be a really GOOD deal...My Dad and I are going to make it into a lap hoop (next week's Artist Date!) but I wanted to make it so that it could collapse for easier transport...so we are thinking about how to make the legs snap up and down...(I love working on projects with my Dad).
4. I think the working thru the Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain book is going to make a lot more sense after going thru TAW...

Task 2 - Touchstones
Apricots warm from the sun, blue skys and green hills, wild sunflowers, fat little birds, swans, microbead pillows, fresh coffee brewing with bacon frying, snuggling under the covers when its the 'perfect' temperature - not hot, not cold, the sound of lawnmowing on a warm summer day, mincemeat cookies, chai tea with cream.