Monday Post ~ November 21, 2011
“Creativity arises out of the tension between spontaneity and limitations, the latter forcing the spontaneity into the various forms which are essential to the work of art or poem.” ~Rollo May
What are your plans for creative practice this week? Given the specifics of your schedule, decide on a realistic goal or a milestone to reach for. A goal as simple as “I will be creative for 10 minutes every day” or “I will gesso three canvases” is what it’s all about. Share your goal(s) as a comment to this post, and let us know how things went with your creative plans for last week, if you posted to last week’s Monday Post.
Suggestion: When you’re deciding on your creative intentions, it’s a good idea to think about WHEN you’re going to write those 2,000 words or paint that canvas. Try to schedule the time slots in your calendar (if you keep one), understanding that flexibility may be required. If things don’t happen when you wanted them to, that’s OK. Give yourself a gentle push with one hand, but pat yourself kindly on the shoulder with the other if you don’t reach your goal for a given week. Sometimes it’s easier, sometimes it’s harder. Ride whatever you’ve got.
It’s also useful to have a sense of your minimum requirements (come hell or high water I’m going to write 100 words) while keeping a lookout for sudden opportunities to do more. You know, the day that the baby takes a monster nap or your partner takes the kids out to run errands and you find yourself with an unexpected “extra” half hour. Grab that time for yourself. You can catch up on the dishes and the laundry later. If you keep something creative in the back of your mind for those sudden opportunities, you’ll be more likely to use them to your advantage — rather than squandering your precious bonus moments on Facebook or vacuuming out the sofa cushions.
Studio Mothers: Life & Art 
YAY! I wanted to make sure to *actually* come here and comment this week, and look! Here I am! YAY, ME!
I didn’t comment last week…but I DID:
-write 3 blog posts
-move my body every day (lots of yoga and spontaneous dance parties)
-take a break from mama-ing over the weekend (SO GOOD)
-put the finishing touches on my first-ever book-editing project (!!!!)
-try a new recipe (for scalloped potatoes)
This week I would like to:
-move my body every day
-write 3 blog posts
-tweak my website(s)
-try to crochet again
-take another mama-break (SOOOOO GOOOOOOD!!!!)
-reread some more of Isadora Duncan’s autobiography (background for a project that I’ve had half-done for 2 years)
Last week’s goals:
* Art Every Day Month project [yes]
* Creative intensive at Open House [yes]
* Play hooky from work to go on museum date with husband [yes–was awesome]
* CCA homework for one class plus reading [yes]
* Journaling [daily target–yes]
* Yoga x 3 [only x 2, as chest cold kept me home on Sat]
This week:
Family visiting, oldest son home from college, and the usual Thanksgiving inzanity. (OK, inzanity should absolutely be a word.) Plus client work. Can’t see how to fit exercise into this week’s schedule. Want to work on new short story ideas.
This week’s goals:
* Art Every Day Month project [daily, with posts every other day or so–may use these windows for writing too]
* CCA homework for one class plus reading [Th]
* Journaling [daily target]
It’s been forever since I participated here…totally steamrolled by work and life and our weeklong trip to Disney World.
BUT!
Here I am, and here are my goals:
Work on the loooong Doctor Who scarf I am knitting for my daughter for Christmas.
Complete a rather sizeable wholesale order of glass cupcake bead pendants and rings.
Bake!
Visit the ancient Egyptian exhibit at our museum with my oldest daughter
Choose a new book to read.
ack!
last week’s goals: finish. this. draft. will go to library tomorrow. and wednesday and thursday if necessary.
~i got some work done on it, happy with it, also wrote a poem and *finally* got those bushes i bought back in september into the ground! i sang a lot, too. kicked brahm’s requiem’s a$$ at the transgender remembrance day event yesterday. very proud of my little choruus which sang for three services yesterday. and i baked some awesome pumpkin muffins.
this week’s goals: survive in-law invasion and ubercook. tomorrow is my writing group – chip at the end of this manuscript draft for a few hours.