An Auspicious Beginning

I spent the day catering to myself.

I slept late.

I read.

I did my Morning Pages. I've been doing them for a few years now, three long-hand written notebook pages. Stream-of-consciousness. I found this practice online. It's the idea of Julia Cameron from the iconic book, the Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. I am just reading the book, now. The other main practice she advocates is the Artist's Date. Morning Pages are a daily practice. Artist Dates are a weekly practice. Today became my official first.

I prepared like a "real" date. I showered, styled my hair, put in my earrings.

Lunch was at Red Lobster. A Grand Patron Margarita, Caesar Salad, Cheddar Bay® Biscuits, Garlic Shrimp Scampi, Garlic-Grilled Sea Scallops, and the best asparagus I've had in ages. I read while I ate because I wanted. The biscuits, yummy as always, were perfect for soaking up all of the garlicky butter sauce.

My waiter, Jeffrey, had a british accent. I dropped a lettuce leaf from my salad on my breast and he never batted an eye.

After lunch, I went to Boundary Creek Park, my parents' favorite walking space. I took off my shoes, walked across the cool and prickly grass. There was a continuous breeze, soft and the same temperature as my skin so I felt like it was a part of me. I read.

The rumble of thunder (and jets and dump trucks on the highway nearby) along with a flash rainstorm chased me home.

And I found a penny, face up. Score!

Books read today:

the Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity - Julia Cameron

Less - Andrew Sean Greer

At the Far End of Nowhere - Christine Davis Merriman

Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within - Natalie Goldberg

Stop! - Look. See. Notice.

I get to and from most places, like work or the grocery store, on auto-pilot.

This week, I'm going to look for stop signs.

I'm not even sure what they look like. Are they six-sided or eight-sided? They're red. Is there an outline around the edges? I think the word STOP is all in caps and white.

Is there one at the mouth of my street?

How many are there, between here and there?

When and where was the first stop sign created? What do stop signs look like in other countries?

January's Wieners

The Wieners of January's Amazingly Bombastic Creative Scavenger Hunt were

ACTONBELL,
TLP,
TOM & ICY
and
TSDUFF.

The competition was fast and furious and bombastically creative. I, of course, never finished my list.

The Rules

What: A contest where you gather together images for each item on the alphabetical list that fits the words’ meanings. They may be images you find on the internet or any photographs, drawings, or visual images you create yourself.

Who: Anyone who wants to play.

Where: Post your selections on your website.

When: You have until the end of the month, by midnight Eastern Standard Time, because that’s how I live and I can’t make any time zone adjustments.

How: I don’t know. I randomly picked out the word pairs and I have no idea if it’s possible to match them. Feel free to make things up. That’s why the word Creativity is in the title.

Why: Because it sounds like fun to me. I’ll be doing it, too, although I won’t be able to win the prize. Yes, there will be a prize, which will be surprise. Actually, there is no prize, except the satisfaction of a job well done. I know that sucks, but such is life.

To be a wiener: Post your images and announce your entry to me. You may let me know you have finished by commenting on any of my millions of sites or sending me an email to goldennib at comcast dot net. I will judge whether you have captured the meanings, any of the meanings, no matter how obscure, of the word pairs. If I can’t figure any out, I will ask you to explain. If you can, we’re cool. If you can’t, oh, well. The first person to notify me and get the most images on the list “correct” will win. No entries will be accepted for prizes after the deadline, but we can still enjoy your efforts if you’ve done some of the words, so post anyway. My decisions are final unless I change my mind; I can if I want.

Even Eagle

Dumb Donkey

Creamy Cow