Category: to-do list

Get to Work

And now to get back in business, I started the next watercolor painting last night after the kitchen was cleaned up. Mind you, I’m juggling too many apples right now and don’t know how I even managed to walk downstairs to my studio. Some internal messaging was happening. Maybe it’s all the art business classes I’ve been taking? The bad girl inside my head is being knocked down by good intentions I guess.
Keep working!
The to-do list, or task list as we’ve been instructed to call it, had quite a few things on it for yesterday, but I was able to mark each one off and move on. I purchased the tube of paint I wanted and now I can continue. 
There’s no way you can mix colors without the primaries. Nope. I needed a yellow, and I couldn’t remember what my paint was called. Permanent Yellow Light? No. I ended up with a Cadmium Yellow Lemon. 
Okay, I know cadmiums are toxic. I will not be eating the paint.
Also, not thrilled with the latest brushes I purchased. I keep turning back to my old sable Windsor & Newton brushes. When I wet the large Issabey brush and paint with it, it gets mushy. There’s no spring to it. That was a pricey brush even on sale. You can’t try a brush in the store to know how it will respond. So, stuck with it.
Enough drama for today. Time to get to work.

To-Do List Anxiety

There’s no way everything can get done at once. Just no way. The anxiety of a long to-do list is exhausting. Even getting some painting done isn’t going to happen in a snap. Maybe a series of snaps.

With the roof work taking forever (in my mind) and other things needing my attention, I get stressed. What can I do first, second, next, until I’m done? It’s a problem.

Next session

I solve the problem by diligently crossing off each item on my list as they were done. It’s a visual thing and it makes me feel as if I’ve accomplished something. Painting is always on that list first.

Rarely do I paint first. And rarer is the day I paint first thing in the morning. That never happens, except this week. Somehow I ended up in my studio in the morning and decided I had enough time to clean up some of this work before the day started in.

The darks were added to define some of the areas I felt needed some guidance. Now it’s starting to look like something I’m comfortable with. For a while I wasn’t sure if I wanted to continue, but I remembered it’s the PROCESS!

So in the “process” I can’t find a recently purchased tube of yellow watercolor paint. Oh nice, now I have to go shopping for paint I already have somewhere here. I need it.

See that nice light yellow color in the leaves of basil? Yup, that’s what I need to buy now.

Getting Over the Hump

New work begins

Wednesday is hump day. As in the day in the week that gets us over the hump and into the weekend stretch. Not my favorite day. It only means the quiet will be ending and the hubbub, noisy weekend stuff begins.

My favorite day, as I’ve said many times already you’re probably bored of it, is Monday. Sweet Monday. The day everyone returns to normal.

Anyway, don’t pay any attention to me. I am just trying to distract myself from the to-do’s and painting with idle chatter from my brain. It’s noisy up in there.

After finishing the last painting, I had to find a subject for the next one. The 100 Paintings Challenge is waiting. There were a few more photos of my peach at the beach and I decided to just plow in with one of them. And yeah, it’s Wednesday. I lost a few days fooling around with a stomach bug and I need to make up time.

And right now I don’t have a lot of that. Painting #37 is waiting.

Next Thing on the List

(I really want to be here)

The thing with To-Do lists is that you need to actually do the things on the list, right?  So how come I have such a long list?  Maybe it’s because I’m not getting to anything on this list?  What do you think?  If I’m not working on the list why am I so busy and tired?

Every day that goes by, every week, the same things are still there on my list, waiting. Want an idea of what’s on my list?  Ok, here goes:

  • Play in the studio every day for however long
  • Organize studio closet for flat storage and upright canvas
  • Get a CD shelf at IKEA to replace another shelf and move to studio
  • Matte some finished work
  • File paperwork
  • Get a black handbag
  • Make more bracelets for Etsy shop
  • Add more finished work to Etsy shop
  • Plan Artist Dates
  • Remember to take photos while on Artist Date for blog (ugh, keep forgetting)
  • Shread 2007, 08, 09 papers
  • Visit Pearl Paint for 50% off art supplies sale
  • Call cable guy
  • Call dishwasher repair guy
  • Call electrician to fix studio light and other stuff
  • Re-arrange living room furniture, again
  • Do Artist’s Way tasks I liked again
  • Remove old carpet from foyer
  • Paint foyer
  • Re-paint bedroom with better color
  • Buy picture frames for favorite photos before my babies have babies
  • Put photos in albums before babies have baby photos
  • Blah blah blah and on, and on, and on. 

There’s more, but I’m tired of this list already.  Is it the weather?  Is it my artist’s block showing up to hold me back? 

Somehow I need to shake it off, wake up, show up and get on with it.  This is ridiculous.