Some reasons why we procrastinate...

1. Fear of Failure.
Many people put off doing things because they are afraid of failing. If they only speak of their hopes and dreams, but make no firm effort towards achieving their goal, they cannot fail.
2. Feeling Overwhelmed.
Many times we look at a goal and feel that there is too much that needs to be done in order to accomplish it. The sense of being overwhelmed paralyzes us, preventing us from taking even the first step towards achieving our goal.
3. Human Nature.
We naturally tend to avoid that which causes us hardship or pain, and gravitate towards that which is easy or gives us pleasure. In order to avoid procrastination due to the unappealing or difficult nature of a task, commit to complete the most unpleasant jobs first.
4. Perspective.
If we view a task as being difficult, then that is exactly what it will be for us. Rather than dreading a given assignment, view it as an opportunity to excel.
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Wednesday

Who are you!!??

I love seeing and hearing about what my friends are up to. Natalie has just launched her website with lovely hand crafted cards.... et voila: http://2dream.yolasite.com/

Thursday

Fair do's...

This is a great site to source fairly traded products from. There are a variety of products and prices but just one sound mission statement:
"shop for the widest range of eco-friendly and fair trade products."

www.ethicalsuperstore.com

Tuesday

Thankful for fairy lights!


Its blustery outside, one trip into town guarantees getting soaked. I need to eat some lettuce leaves as Christmas has left my skin kinda Elphaba!! The christmassy stuff is all away and its back to earning a lil cash. I'm glad of fairy lights, its nice to have them in this less than cheery time of year. Bring on 2007...

Saturday

Mr Zamzar

F.Y.I

Mr Zamar, for those to whom I've not explained, is of course Chris! And the website which he is developing with his Brother is called 'Zamzar' ironically its all about conversion - not so much of the soul, but file conversion (A certain proclaimed one liner genius reckons there is a good pun to be had somewhere), feel free to challenge by posting suggestions!

.doc to .pdf etc, go play!

Tuesday

I've turned into an e-geek

Happy New Year!
I have just spent 3 days trying to workout:
How to write code to produce an 'RSS feed'
Create a 'tag cloud'
In that time I have also wandered around the internet falling clumsily into many sign-ups including: Facebooking myself ;) *

I am a a self confessed:

(Monday night) Footballers wife - I missed the end of a film the other night because match of the day was on AGAIN for like the 70th time in 10 days.
An e-geek (essex girl geek....)

*I would like to add that all the above has been created of my own volition with not a single bit of assistance from Mr Zamzar.

Sunday

My favourite Christmas present!

Well, we had a superb Christmas with lots of family fun and games - went to a very traditional high church Midnight Mass in Essex, which was wonderful, and gave us an insight to how odd, people who aren't used to church, must feel on attending services such as these... we had to sing communion confessions.... I just talked, means the same eh....


....SO Chris bought tickets to see the show "Wicked" - It was absolutely amazing, the music and scenery was tremendous, the most striking role was the lead character 'Elphaba' played by Idina Menzel. She was awesome her passionate acting was inspiring. I would highly recommend this.... its one for everyone: not just girls!

Favourite piece of music: 'Defying gravity'.
Review of plot
Book tickets

...Monkey socks from Grandma were pretty essential, stylish and cool too.

Tuesday

Billy Graham on Marriage

Last night I had a chilled time listening to some teaching: This has an old school sound but is fab old skool teaching on Marriage.

Marriage podcast

Monday

Wonderful friendships

Wonderful friendships nurture give and take. Friendships for me are based on the integrity within the relationship which allows for giving to that person, and receiving from them that which they offer unconditionally. This weekend I've had the joy of spending time with and speaking to friends I value very much. Thanks for indulging my creativity and cooking and listening to what God has been saying.

.... Hey Amers: Cool party! Blog the next one on the community site.

I often think in similies; here are some of my thoughts:

They asked her again as commandingly as Herod once did, she stood fast and knew the right decision to make.

The duvet tumbled like a determined waterfall haphazardly to the floor.

He shot forwards like a destructive bolder, not considering the young child looking on.

Their faith was as steadfast as the large Canadian redwood they felt crushed beneath.e

She dressed elega
ntly, moving as deftly as a carefree dragonfly.

The first two cups were unsatisfactory, but the third - his eyelids simply collapsed like falling silk at the joy of the perfect brew!

They listened and their response - Like a fathers embrace, told her to take action and follow her heart.

Carefully they bandaged, prayerfully they fought, it felt like another night in the wrong territory.

He came along and contributed with gusto and humility, he was like his Father.

Sunday

Using The Arts To Heal International Divides

United through the Arts: We could all use a little of this.

Michael Kaiser has been ambitious since the day he took the reins at Washington's Kennedy Center. "For the past three years, Kaiser, who volunteers as a cultural ambassador with the U.S. State Department, has helped arts organizations in other countries improve their planning, marketing and fundraising, and he has brought artists from Iraq, China and elsewhere to the U.S... He and the Kennedy Center have focused their training efforts in countries that are 'in transition and in trouble' -- including Pakistan and Iraq -- because that's where art can have the greatest impact."
Courtesy Bloomberg - 12/07/06 - full article

I love teaching Art, the people who I teach seem to have very few preconceived ideas about the end result, therefore they never know if what they are doing is 'right' or 'wrong'. This is really important. It helps to relax into the subject and release allowable ideas ordinarily unspoken.

Thursday

The Art of Christmas shopping

Etsy

Your place to buy and sell all things handmade

This a cool quirky site

Send a Cow
Or just send a gift which produces homemade products
all year round !!!

Tuesday

Abstract Expressionism


"Lavender Mist" [1950] by Jackson Pollock.

This post is for my friend Lynn! We were having a chat about the impact Art has on a persons life; its all very well discussing a piece of art if you know what image is being refered to. The piece of abstract art above is the one we were talking about last night. Something which is not necessarily easy to view, but which usually provokes a response from the viewer. Abstract art is a style which is prompted by expression in response to a stimulus....

We are setting up a local gallery which will be full of artwork in response to a common stimulus: A journey of faith. Some of this artwork will be abstract and the colour,/composition etc will affect the viewer, other pieces of artwork will be much more figurative.

First Christmas feast of the season

With thanks to my lovely friend Laura Waterton (husbands amusing blog see: blogroll). Laura has many talents and one of them is cooking (I imagine food will feature highly on Toms blog). Not just any old cooking, a feast for 70 of our mates was presented Sunday eve... Thank you so much for a wonderful meal with crisp potatoes and very posh stuffing! ;)

Monday

An ode to lovers of food!

The Clean Plater

Some singers sing of ladies' eyes,
And some of ladies lips,
Refined ones praise their ladylike ways,
And course ones hymn their hips.
The Oxford Book of English Verse
Is lush with lyrics tender;
A poet, I guess, is more or less
Preoccupied with gender.
Yet I, though custom call me crude,
Prefer to sing in praise of food.
Food,
Yes, food,
Just any old kind of food.
Pheasant is pleasant, of course,
And terrapin, too, is tasty,
Lobster I freely endorse,
In pate or patty or pasty.
But there's nothing the matter with butter,
And nothing the matter with jam,
And the warmest greetings I utter
To the ham and the yam and the clam.
For they're food,
All food,
And I think very fondly of food.
Through I'm broody at times
When bothered by rhymes,
I brood
On food.
Some painters paint the sapphire sea,
And some the gathering storm.
Others portray young lambs at play,
But most, the female form.
“Twas trite in that primeval dawn
When painting got its start,
That a lady with her garments on
Is Life, but is she Art?
By undraped nymphs
I am not wooed;
I'd rather painters painted food.
Food,
Just food,
Just any old kind of food.
Go purloin a sirloin, my pet,
If you'd win a devotion incredible;
And asparagus tips vinaigrette,
Or anything else that is edible.
Bring salad or sausage or scrapple,
A berry or even a beet.
Bring an oyster, an egg, or an apple,
As long as it's something to eat.
If it's food,
It's food;
Never mind what kind of food.
When I ponder my mind
I consistently find
It is glued
On food.

Ogden Nash

A hard days graft.



My work today! A screenprint Kitsch style. I love my job, how satisfying to be able to say that about the thing you invest most of your life in. Today I have experimented with colour, recyclable papers and design.
I hope this artist enjoys her work as I really love it:


Close (2000) By Elizabeth Magill.

She grew up in Co Antrim, attended Belfast College of Art and Slade School of Art. She paints landscapes in the tradition of Romantic landscape painting.


Lovely!




" An experiment in Creativity, Collaboration and Capitalism"
Creative genius' this is a site which is fun to use. You create your own artwork and can sell it on, not for 'real bucks' there is some cool bartering system. Openstudio

Sunday

How to be a Entrepreneur


A rewarding thing to do with ones time is to encourage another in what they are good at. Not always a pat on the back, sometimes an anonymous note, a gift, a helpful piece of advice... Genuine friendship.

"Great art is the outward expression of an inner life in the artist." Edward Hopper
Need a Snow Day?