Accomplishments and humor

 A warm welcome to you from Crows Chase Cottage. Another week is upon us, as mid August draws near. Our nightly temps have gotten cooler recently, which brought on a delightful autumnal vibe. It seemed fitting, as yesterday, I completed my painting. After applying what seemed to be 10 layers of grasses and autumn wildflowers, I called it done. Just in time, as tomorrow, it goes on display at The Grinning Possum. 

Close up of gate and fence

'October Sunrise'

As I prepare to part with it, the realization of how sentimental this painting is to me comes to the forefront. Memories of childhood rambles along this ridge remain fresh in my mind. With those crisp October days being the best for exploring nature in all its brilliance. 

Another accomplishment for me this week, while satisfying to have finally completed, was not as enjoyable performing. After buying the domain www.crowschase.com I finally took a few deep breaths, shook out all of the negative vibes and set about designing my website. About five hours into whatever website design is supposed to be, I began questioning my decision not to take any of the coding courses offered at local colleges. Mistakes followed mistakes, confusion led to frustration.....but after several days of YouTube tutorials, success! It may not be the snazziest design on the web, but it is mine. And for me, at this moment in time, that is a win! 😎 

My website logo

My first week with FACS has been overwhelmingly positive! They have welcomed me in and immediately began showcasing my work via their social media and web page. How amazing is that?! In my book, awesomely amazing! Also, once the owner discovered that I make Junk Journals and ephemera, I was asked to prepare and teach a class ASAP. 😲 I had already planned on teaching a few classes at Grinning Possum this fall, but had yet to put together an instruction plan. So, a plan of action was pieced together in 12 hours and by this morning the class was listed on their site. Surprisingly, there are not any dedicated Junk Journal instructors nearby, despite the rise in popularity of this paper based craft.... or as I call it 'Where up-cycling meets art'. If you are interested in an in depth definition of Junk Journals, there is a handy link on my website that leads to a wonderful blog page written by Justine Jenkins. She is a fellow paper-crafter and blogger living in the United Kingdom. 

Example of my Junk Journal work

Before closing, I wish to share some entertaining snippets that occurred this past week at Crows Chase. The first took place early Friday morning, just after feeding the crows. As pictured here before, they have a large platform with tree branches across the top. It was only a few minutes after coming indoors that I looked out our kitchen window to do a quick count of how many crows had arrived to feed. Suddenly, a large red tailed hawk swooped in from the nearby trees to investigate what was going down on this platform. I watched with amusement as its head tilted sideways, back and forth, attempting to see what it was the crows were so excited about. I am sure it was thinking.....'What goodies are here to be pillaged' or 'I don't see any tasty mice, etc.' I could sense the disappointed confusion by watching its body language. Finally, it flew over to a branch that hangs directly above one of our bird feeders. It was then I noticed a poor little squirrel that had froze with fear just below the hawk. My thought was, 'Not today dude'. I immediately opened up my window and loudly instructed the hawk to go back home. Startled, it flew away into the trees and the little squirrel ran and hid under a nearby shrub. The crows returned, and all was well. 

The second amusing event happened Saturday. We have several chickens that wander over to our property from the neighboring farm. We also have numerous wild turkeys in the area, with several juveniles already being independent from their family group. With so many types of animals visiting our gardens, I like to keep small watering dishes at different locations. When looking out that morning, of course I noticed the chickens, but suddenly noticed a strange 'bird' drinking from a small dish. It did not look like a chicken, in fact, it wasn't. It was a young turkey. Of course I was delighted to have a turkey taking advantage of the water source. However, what happened next was hilarious. The turkey wasn't just passing through....It had adopted itself into the group of chickens! Yes, a wild turkey just decided to become one of the local chickens instead 😂 It has been running with them since. Even more hilarious, this morning I looked out and saw the rest of the turkey flock walking up our fence row. And yes, the young turkey was in our side garden with the chickens watching them walk by. You just can't make this stuff up. 

I hope these little stories from Crows Chase have brightened your day. I also hope that if you are struggling with self doubt in your creative journey, that very soon confidence and inspiration flow to you. I struggle daily with doubt, especially in my decision to take this new journey in the art world. But I have come to realize that it is time to do what is right for me and my spirit, not to continually bounce from one thankless hustle to another. I am not saying it is a field of dreams every day.....there are definitely struggles, but isn't one's spirit worth it? At least to try. An attempt to create something beautiful, unique, provocative, mysterious, joyful. In doing that, yes, it is worth it. We need artists, writers, and creators of wonderment. And on those days when you feel like no one is cheering you onward, there will be someone somewhere cheering for you because your creative spirit spoke to them, kept them afloat in dark times. Yes, you can do that. And that means everything to someone out there. 

With kindest regards, from the Cottage at Crows Chase

'Meditation Bowl'