rise and shine!

It’s 6:45 am in Ithaca and I am up and drinking coffee, ready to change my life! It’s time.  I’ve given so many years to hard work, and now I’m sensing it’s time to sum it all up.  Tie a bow on what I completed with excellence and move into my new era.  One that is filled with books and more books, workshops, drawing classes maybe?, art shows & creations that I’m not even thinking about right now.  Always gotta get better at what I do  best.

But for now, I’m realizing that I must clean my studio at some point.  There are receipts and random pieces of paper everywhere!  Next, I’ll clean my bedroom and get all my clothes from off the floor.  Might even find something to wear:-)  With studio and bedroom cleaned, and me dressed in newly found clothes, I must go to FedEx to ship out some art that has been purchased from out of state.  I need to figure out what is the best way to do this, and it’s my understanding that FedEx is the best company for artists.  Any comments on that?

Next I need to decide what it is I want to do for the rest of the year.  Not working full time *EVER* again. (I’ vow!).  Actually, I will get off the subject and talk about my full-time work and why I dedicated myself so much.  I have this hidden dream of changing the way people relate to the food service industry and help employers understand why it’s in their benefit to treat all their employees good (and yes, that includes undocumented workers as well as legal immigrants).  Also want to help the staff capitalize on the flexibility that comes naturally with this industry and do some great stuff with their lives.  Working in cafes, restaurants and bars allows you to skip town with just a couple of weeks notice and go somewhere cool, or just take time off, etc.  The only catch is that you have to make enough money to afford to travel and pay your regular bills, which means that we must learn to live with really low bills (the freedom is worth it!).

Another thing I want to mention is that the people who work in the food and beverage industry are the single moms, high school & college drop-outs, artists, writers, actors, legal and illegal immigrants, and people working their way through higher education.  Although most have very difficult lives, they come with a load of hidden potential: one of the greatest things that can happen to you is that you not live in the system that forces you to behave “appropriately”, which just means you would have to live your life in some form of straitjacket, (nothing creative can come from that!). The potential is what naturally emerges from a person who in not living in a confined situation.  Perfect for artists!

How would the world change if just the food service industry alone changed?  There is a huge need here to help people understand the opportunities that lie secretly in this field.  One day I hope I will write extensively on this subject.  For now, let me get back to what I was saying…my goal for the rest of the year ~ carve out free time, prepare for another art show, and maybe take classes somewhere to learn from other people.   Rising and shining starts with my next step.