More Suffolk Sunshine

Wow.  This is a proper Indian Summer.  Its more summery than summer was.  Apart from its a different and beautiful colour.  This is Autumn.  In the mornings there are these amazing mist which, pierced by the sun slowly dissipates.  The leaves are turning; yellow, brown, red.  The red ones are really amazing.  And its a cool heat, hot but not in anyway unbearable.  I am relishing it,  lapping it up.  Like some sort of extra time blessing.  It shouldn't be like this, but it IS.  WOW.  am loving it.

SO we are back up in Suffolk for a long planned trip with Hub as well as Bub.  We have been hanging out at the beach hut again and today we were at Aldeburgh for a healthy dose of those amazing fish n chips. 

Tomorrow is my 2nd try at teaching the Accelerated Productivity process.  I am still on my close friends here.  So.  It went well last time.  J really got a lot out of it, and tackled things that had been lurking and bothering here for 4 years!  All done now!   

likemind brighton, art fairs and suffolk in the sunshine

I do love Likemind.  Its like a monthly meet up for freelance creatives.  Giving the opportunity to chat and have a watercooler moment even if you don't work in a big office. There's probably one happening near you.  If not, perhaps you could start one?

I always meet someone interesting.  Last time I met a chap who is starting up a Sunglasses company that will give a free pair of prescription glasses to someone in the third world.  Its called Farther and Sun.  Also met an illustrator called Phil Corbet who actually draws for the Dandy.

It was time lapsed last time we met and this is the result!  See me there on the right....


Welcome to the moon from Curtis James on Vimeo.

Its been a pretty busy few days in my life.  From morris dancing on thursday night to a friday in which I had lunch out, did my yoga course, went to the Brighton Art Fair and then a mad night time dash up to Suffolk.  At the Brighton Art Fair i met up with 2 pals, Sophie Abbott and Rachel Heavens, who were exhibiting there.  And found out that it was not as much as I thought it might be.... and then a mad night time dash to Suffolk to meet up with cousins, (one stopping over en route from Seattle to New Delhi   - he lives in Australia now so we don't see him often)

It was a beautiful weekend.  Weather was perfect Autumnal gorgeousness. Misty in the morning.  Warm sunshine later.  We hung out at the beach hut.  My Bro came too.  Oh it was nice.  Am tired now though.  All that mad dashing.  We were up and leaving the house on Sunday at 8am so I could get to work on Sunday in Brighton at noon.  Am having an early night tonight!

Clearing your head

This post from Danielle La Porte reminded me of what my new job at People Who Do is all about....  helping people clear the way for bigger and better things... 

get immediate relief: energy leaks + enlightenment

 

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the lock that always sticks
the client that can never remember what you said
that kink in your neck
slight allergies, slightly foggy head
the girl on the team who's always cranky
those too-tight trousers
the way your partner greets you (s.he can do better)
the way you greet your partner (you can do better and you know it, and you want to)
those damn e-newsletters that are so tricky to unsubscribe from that you just hit delete and curse at the screen.

the pebble in your shoe is bigger than you think

Small, annoying things. Energy leaks. We tend to discredit the slight aggravations in life + work because our attention is on accomplishing the big things. But think about the trying to walk with a grain of sand in your sock. You won't go more than a block until you frantically peel off your shoe and give things a firm shake 'n swipe. Ahhh, relief. Think about the dramatic effect of a pin prick to an inner tube, the power of a mosquito, that impact of a sliver.
Every time you make REPEATED contact with aggravating tasks and situations, you make a conscious or unconscious choice to endure (the root of the word endure is 'to suffer',) and to settle with less-than-ideal. This kind of aggravation triggers resentment and bad ju-ju. We direct our pissed-off vibe outward, (Damn landlord needs to fix this lock.) Or inward, (These too tight pants are what I get for being so lazy.) And in doing so, we affirm any feelings of helplessness and overwhelm that are floating in our consciousness. And a little bit of our energy zipples out of our sails.

fix the small stuff

Noticing -- really noticing -- what's rubbing on you is part of being conscious. When subtleties grab your attention you are not OCD, you're lucid. When you deal with the annoyances, you're not a control freak, you're the master of your reality.
Look at it this way: energy leaks are usually really easy to fix because they're small. It's simply a matter of stopping to tend to them. When you fix the stuff that's picking at you, you get relief, and that freshness helps you focus on the big stuff.

god + mastery are in the details. so is your freedom.

Where's the rub in your day-to-day? Make a plan to cure, dissolve or absolve it.
What's the mosquito-like thought form that's zifting in your psyche? Visualize rinsing it away, make a phone call that will settle things.
What's broken that you want fixed? Hire a handyman, find a homeopath, reach out and mend it with love.
Your vitality deserves an as-soon-as-possible response.
Get on it. Because you have bigger things to do.

Equinox Dancing with Hunters Moon Morris

On Wednesday night I got the most random of texts.   "I have two tickets for a morris dancing class in Eastbourne, but the girl I was going with has let me down, do you want to come?"  It was pure surreal.  And as such could not be turned down.  There is no way I would EVER have thought of doing that for a night out.  Its proper Artist's date material.  And the weird and unexpectedness of the whole thing totally engaged me and I was very excited about it.  Total unknown.   Plus very nice to see C.  She went to Burning Man for the first time this year.  I really want to go to Burning Man....

Anyway, I digress.  I picked C up from the station and we followed the printed out google maps to a primary school in the depths of Eastbourne suburbia.  This was a long way from home.  And me and C were into the deepest darkest unknown territory.

I looked up the Hunters Moon Morris on the web.  They do Border Morris which is not often seen, and is wilder and freer than the more common Cotswold Morris - and have the MOST amazing outfits. Not your average Morris then.  No, if Morris did Rock n Roll, these guys were it.



We arrived and a really lovely oldish lady came to greet us, with  a hug and a kiss!  We were warmly welcomed!  The school hall was filled with a proper assortment of folk. Men, women, even a child.  It was Open night so there were about 10 of us total beginners, there to learn a dance. The dance at the top of this blog, as it happens.....



It was, of course, weird.  But it was weird GOOD.  The people were friendly, lovely.  Totally keen on their thing.  Doing what they LOVE.  though a couple of the chaps, - they were still friendly - but they were AWESOME.  I wish I had taken photos, because it is not often you meet people you just want to stare at.  There was this old chap, with a massive beard and long hair in a pony tail.  And piercing blue eyes, who just stood.  With such charisma.  Honestly.  It was like seeing a character from another time  and place.  He stood so tall and proud and still. 

I digress.



The music, was brilliant.  And there must be something ancient and rootsy about the whole thing, because, they all said it was addictive, and it was the best thing they had ever done with their lives, and it was like that.  C and I LOVED it.  WE learnt a dance called The 4th Of September (because that was the date the guy who wrote the dance wrote it) and we did it.  With big sticks.  Its a slightly wild lolloping kind of Morris dance.  And it really did feel good.  In a weird, I have done this before, it totally fits, kind of weird good.  If it weren't so far away and I weren't so involved with learning Yoga and all.  I think I might have upped camp and joined the Hunters Moon.   Like running away with the Gypsies, the wild people.  It was addictive and I really had a great night out.  SO exilerating to do something so radically outside of the ordinary.

C it turns out has a friend who is travelling the country investigating Folklore, which is how she had come across the Hunters Moon.  This Chap is wanting to set up a Museum of Folklore and is fascinating on the subject. 

I love that I have a friend who loves to do adventurous things like that.   I feel so infused with life from that the whole thing.  And also some slightly weird sense that it was proper magic at work



You can see more of the Hunters Moon here and here. 

moving forward

So.  Miss Blog.  Miss Get Stuff Done on a quest to achieve my dreams. 

How is it going? Well, yes, pretty good. 

Still no studio.  STicky Sticky bit.  Thing is, what IS it that is stopping me? Its the silly fact that when my husband snores there will be no where to go.  Since we have had this house, there has always been a spare room, and hence, a spare bed, and when Hub snores, he does it nice and LOUDLy.  bless him.  And I sneak off and sleep SLEEP (I love sleeping) somewhere else.  Bub is now in the 'spare room' and his little bedroom at the back is meant to be MY STUDIO.  But is now the spare room.  We have had visitors of late, and its better them being in there.  BUT.  my studio.  Its a sticky point.  And it requires a DECISION.    The solution at present seems to me to be BUNK BEDS.  Great idea.  Bub has a bed and if necessary I could crawl into the other bunk as and when.  And SLEEP. 

Other sticky issues are getting the spare car key cut.  These things should be easy and simple, right? And here's me with my super efficient list of '@errands' or 'things to do when out and about' and so far I been into the key cutter place twice to no satisfactory result.  grrrr.  They haven't got the key base I need, but they can order it, oh they need to know the make and year of the car in order to order it.  Am now waiting for them to call me to let me know that they have it in their shop. 

But you know,  I can't complain.  I do have computer back up now.  Hey, its only been 2 years.  I also have set the Sainsburys credit card to pay off the whole balance each month.  YES much better.  I have cancelled 2 credit cards I don't use and have reordered other itty bitty admin stuff. 

STILL.  lessons are being learnt here.  Yes I am freezing the cashmere and wool stuff to kill the moth eggs, yes my wardrobe has been thoroughly cleaned.  Yes I am a tidier person.  BUT dreams, Moyra, DREAMS.  I dream of being a painter.  Who owns a campervan / converted horse box.  And what about Ibiza and San Francisco?  And  my successful thriving portraits business.....  It all requires more work.  As does the YOGA practice.....


I am thought, very much LIKING the People Who Do stuff.  I like being a consultant.  I like the system.  It works and I like how it helped J, and how she got it.  And I like how it got her to throw stuff out that she was hanging on to for no good reason.  And I am liking the huge decluttering that is happening through my life.  Tidy is good.  And its staying tidy too. 

I am clearing up the ground level, ready to fly.......

remember
yoga / income generation / declutter / holidays

teaching productivity

On Saturday I went up to London to teach my very good friend the principles of Accelerated Productivity.  When I arrived she had amassed a VAST pile of stuff that was bothering her, piling up files, and folders, and brochures, and old work and college notes, and a long list of things that weren't as she wanted them to be.  From photo frames that didn't stand up, to tax returns that hadn't been done for..... way too long.  It was almost a whole room

So we got stuck in.  And I think she got it.  She really got it.  At the end of the day.  Her bed was cleared, everything had found a place (a lot of it was in the bin!) and she had a clear idea about what her next steps were on everything.  And where to find those next steps.  Her inbox was empty.  She had several key things entered into her calendar.  I think she was quite amazed.  It was hard work, but it was very satisfying.

"I can't belive its all been put away.  I was expecting to rearrange the piles a bit.  I think I was expecting a time management prioritisation techniques, not that it was lacking in that, but I was really pleased to be able to put it all away, that everything has a home.

I feel like I have achieved so much  - even though I haven't really done anything yet.  I know what to do and where it all is. Its like everything is doable, from building a new house to getting a tax disc for my bike, the next step will be taken.  I have to admit I feel clear, and by the time you arrived this morning I was quite stressed out.

It was nice that there was the reward at the end (wine!!) I felt I deserved a treat."

From my point of view, I think I got it all across pretty well.  As she was a good friend, if I backtracked and had to re say some bits at a later point to clarify, she didn't mind at all.  I was knackered by the end of it all.  It required a lot of concentration, pulling her back to focus on what she was doing, and what her decisions were going to be.  Its a clever system.  You basically do all your thinking at the front end.  So that the doing becomes easy and lightweight.  And trackable.

Anyway, I will be checking in with her in a week's time to see how she is getting on.

On a personal level.  I am definitely more on the case.  It was lovely to get back to actually doing some creative stuff yesterday (I am trying to post a picture, but its just not going through right now).

ah, I am tired this week, I have actually got a lot going on right now.  Ah, but there is no rest for the wicked, or for mums who are trying to set up their own income streams!! Speaking of which, I am in the gallery today.  And I have had time to do some research for my art business.  Hence, I have signed up for (yet another) e course.  I waivered.  But I was hooked.  Cleverly its with Beth Nichols  - she of the Do What you Love art retreat (and blog and website and ecourse) and Kelly Rae Roberts, whose Flying Lessons e course so influenced me last year.  Yup, its not cheap, but here we go.  Its a business expense isn't it.  And goodness knows I just need another course on my plate!!  If you are interested its called Hello Soul Hello Business.  And they promise that if you don't earn the money back in increased sales you get your money back.  ooh they ARE clever. 

dreaming

of being and doing a workshop with Michele Cassou

"The creative painting work offers practical ways to dissolve creative
blocks and find inspiration so that, in a state of infinite possibility, art
becomes not a means to an end but a place we inhabit, a place to explore our
true selves and the mystery of our lives."

guests from Aus

Hmm the no alcohol and lemon thing slipped a little with visitors arriving from - the other side of the world.  Last time I saw N and G, one was the same age as Bub is now.  N is now Dr N Phd.  Go her!  And when I first met her nearly 20 years ago, she was a nanny, doing housekeeping and a bit of clothes mending on the side.  She's gone far, not just in miles but in her academic career.  Impressive.

Ah but its good to catch up.  I can get back on the hot water with lemon again, but I can't see my old friend again for a long time. At least she does get to travel through work (she's on a whistle stop tour of European Universities and friends and family) so we might get to see her again soon.  And Bub is gagging to visit Australia (and Africa and India), mainly to see the animals of course. 

I am gearing up for my first practice session of Accelerated Productivity. My guinea pig will be my good friend, Bub's godmother, JW.  She is actually pretty organised, but she loves this sort of thing and wants to see me anyway.  Plus if she likes it, she's the best saleswoman and trumpet blower.

Wish me luck.

Little changes are adding up to a big difference

Its the second day I have woken up and drunk a cup of hotwater with lemon instead of tea. One of the things I have taken away from my Accelerated Productivity course is the idea of being a bit more disciplined.  Not a lot, just a bit.  And how this can affect big changes.  I guess its like the idea that once your house is clean and tidy it is easy to keep it so.  And then from there, if there is no more procrastinating to be done in tidying up, then you move on to the to do lists that are really going to make a difference.  And discipline in terms of, well, lets just do that NOW shall we.  Don't be putting it off or to the back of the pile.  Just go ahead and do it. 

One of my long term goals has been to be 'the kind of person who eats clean food'  In its extreme form, this involves being vegan and only eating organic and alkaline foods sort of thing.  You know, a lot of raw flavoursome stuff with no nasties in it.  I ackknowledge that I am most likely not going to be that full on.  But given that I have been waking up sluggish, and to be honest the week of wonderful Frenchness (wine, bread, cheese, meat, pate.... and more wine) was gloriously enjoyable.  It did take its toll.  I cannot drink that much and keep healthy!  Good for holidays, but bad for body.  Lots of little niggly things, like coldsores, hmm nice, which only crop up when I am run down, appeared afterwards.  As did 2 kilos of extra blubber around the middle.....

So day two of hot water and lemon.  Famously a yoga way to start the day.  And also alkalising.  Which is the new health buzzword on the block.

Day 2 of a avocado, water and hemp protein smoothie for breakfast too. Mmm nice (not that nice actually - but filling and on diet)

And nothing 'bad' til after noon. 

And I am down almost a kilo.  Impressive huh.  Just one day.  And I feel good.  Maybe its not just the lemon thing.  Maybe it is also the proactive attitude.  The idea that I am actually doing something about it.

Oh and I can say I am being immensely tidier too.  Little things that have been hanging around forever are being picked up and sorted through.  Book are going back into the shelves as I see them  - just that small sort of thing.  Its not much, each little thing, but it is all adding up to a rather pleased withmyself me.  And yes, I do feel better.

burning man inspirational guiding principles

with thanks to the burning man site and for the inspirational photos posted by inspirational artist, Flora Bowley

What a wonderful wonderful set of guiding principles.  I think I might have to take a big fat leaf out of this book. 

Radical Inclusion

Anyone may be a part of Burning Man. We welcome and respect the stranger. No prerequisites exist for participation in our community.

Gifting

Burning Man is devoted to acts of gift giving. The value of a gift is unconditional. Gifting does not contemplate a return or an exchange for something of equal value.

Decommodification

In order to preserve the spirit of gifting, our community seeks to create social environments that are unmediated by commercial sponsorships, transactions, or advertising. We stand ready to protect our culture from such exploitation. We resist the substitution of consumption for participatory experience.

Radical Self-reliance

Burning Man encourages the individual to discover, exercise and rely on his or her inner resources.

Radical Self-expression

Radical self-expression arises from the unique gifts of the individual. No one other than the individual or a collaborating group can determine its content. It is offered as a gift to others. In this spirit, the giver should respect the rights and liberties of the recipient.

Communal Effort

Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration. We strive to produce, promote and protect social networks, public spaces, works of art, and methods of communication that support such interaction.

Civic Responsibility

We value civil society. Community members who organize events should assume responsibility for public welfare and endeavor to communicate civic responsibilities to participants. They must also assume responsibility for conducting events in accordance with local, state and federal laws.

Leaving No Trace

Our community respects the environment. We are committed to leaving no physical trace of our activities wherever we gather. We clean up after ourselves and endeavor, whenever possible, to leave such places in a better state than when we found them.

Participation

Our community is committed to a radically participatory ethic. We believe that transformative change, whether in the individual or in society, can occur only through the medium of deeply personal participation. We achieve being through doing. Everyone is invited to work. Everyone is invited to play. We make the world real through actions that open the heart.

Immediacy

Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.

one day

one day (soon - ish)I want to be able to say the following

I am a trained yoga teacher
I am a creative consultant
I get paid to do what i love
I am a painter
I own a horsebox which has been converted into somewhere I can live and work and travel
I could, if I had to, support our family, easily with my part time and flexible income.
I can do full navasana
I have been to Burning Man


OK that's enough for now! 

Life post Accelerated Productivity

I haven't posted for ages!  I have this new spinky spanky email account which allows me to email from a People Who Do address.  But its all based in google and I lost my password.  AND AND blah blah.

I expect you have all forgotten who I am!   Well, it was for me anyways this bloggy.  Its my personal personal personal blog. 

I know I keep muttering about a new one.  And I have plans. For a portrait blog,  for a full on art one.  And all.  And it will happen. One day.

For the mean time.  Here I am.

I also went away and a most beautiful if calorific time in France with friends.  Hub stayed home, but you know, some Hubs would complain and insist that I stay home too.  But mine lets me go on holiday even though he doesn't want to!

So in case you missed the last post.

I am now an organised person.  Well, I do most certainly feel more organised.  Its not that much has massively changed, but I now know where I am at.  AND to be fair, I have tackled the ugly monster that was the VAST pile of receipts in 2 box files.  I have sent off 2011 accounts (for year ending april 2011 for those who think I am actually doing my accounts in the future...) which is pretty massive.  And to give you some sense of the scale of this. My personal accounting year 2011 actually runs from 1st May 2009 to 30th April 2010.  I know, its complicated.  And I am considering changing it.  But that is how long ago I had receipts from.  2009.  And you know what I am pretty much there with my 2012 receipts entry as well.  Just my share dividends and interest to go - as for some reason this runs the same year as the rest of anyone elses accounts and i won't have the figures until April 2012.   And just to be truly shockingly organised.  I have actually done some receipts entry into my 2013 accounts.  yup.  get me.

I have also
tackled and sorted the understairs cupboard (monumental!)
sorted through Bub's toy over spill (kind of cheated a little as there is a mashoosive bag of unsorted STUFF in the loft.  But hey)
And.  Oh.  That's it.  Oh yes, kept my in tray at empty.  I think I need a 'glory list' of STUFF I HAVE GOTTEN DONE ALREADY.  Because there are things every day.  Little things, like collecting the bulbs for the kitchen light, taking those tops back to Fat Face, posting the thank you notes and also the gifts, talking through my list of items to discuss with the accountant (all those years and I didn't know I could have put in a proportion of my council tax...) found someone to take on the playgroup after the people I had already found let me down, set up 2 appointments for practise sessions for accelerated productivity, bought tickets to see both Gillian Welch and Le Mystere des Voix Bulgares (been wanting to see them for YEARS) met the neighbours (after a little drumming up of support for the Zocalo Brighton) Hung some pictures of my folks in the hall way. Got the boiler fixed. Cancelled a credit card I don't use, reordered one I had lost, got the list of NHS dentists in Brighton, bought and organised my husbands birthday presents (got him a kindle as we are getting overrun with books here) and cake, registered as an organ donor. Sold a shed load of baby clothes (weep) cleaned the car out on the inside, hoovering and all....  oh hum etc etc.  as well as the usual work in the gallery go to a few meetings etc.

I feel as if I am doing a massive clearing.  Ready for the future.  Getting rid of all the dead weight things I don't need any more. It is in the words of many north americans, AWESOME!!

So can I say that Accelerated Productivity (Getting Stuff Done) works. And so does having Bub back at preschool.  Lets face that fact.  WOW I have time to do stuff. 

The next tranche of things is going to get more tricky.  I am clearing the runway so that I can get my studio up and running and start doing some portraits and art work.  And I need to be disciplined about scheduling in more YOGA.  Watch this space!!