Chalk... A New Territory

In my life drawing class, my professor gives anyone in II or III the chance to do whatever they want the second half of the course. Well, since I am in III and working on my thesis, I am basically just trying to do things I think would work really well for my thesis... abstract figurative drawings.

Well, in life drawing, I am pretty conservative. Conservative in the materials I use, I mean... c'mon, it's life drawing, how "conservative" can you really be when you are drawing naked people for hours? Unlike my vibrant paintings, I like to draw in black and white mediums... preferably charcoal or graphite pencil. Well, at our midterm critique, I had one drawing with a bit of color in it. My professor, who is also my current thesis advisor, told me that I should really consider expanding and branching out with color in my drawings. I was hesitant... I kind of really like my comfortable, charcoal world... and it probably helps me in the fact that I know how to use the material fairly well. BUT, I took her advice, and I am starting to use chalk pastel.

I bought a box of good pastels today from Blick. I experimented the other day in class with color, and I know it's just going to take a lot of getting used to and some good practice. I just need to keep on going... keep on going... keep on going. Right now, I feel like I am in a basic art class again, learning how to technically use different mediums. CONFESSION: I don't like being the new person. I like to be the one that knows what going on and how to do things. I don't want to look stupid or incompetent. But now, I feel like I really look like it. The first drawing I did the other day makes the male model look like an alien (that's what I get for using lime green on his skin) and I just wasn't happy with it.

This is new territory for me. Chalk, that is. I think it is an amazing medium and I LOVE it when other people use it, it's just a matter of me not getting so caught up in being a perfectionist and instead, just loving the process. Hopefully, I will get over my self-consciousness in time for my thesis show so that I could have some really solid chalk pieces in there... we'll see!

Fall... in all it's glory.

Sooooo I like fall. This is one very important piece of information you should know about me. It's my favorite season by far. Even though I love going to the pool during the summer, skiing in the winter, and playing in the rain in the spring, fall just trumps in my opinion.

Why do I love fall? Well, here are my reasons:

1. The GORGEOUS colors when leaves are changing. I think our surroundings are just so spectacular and stunning when there is yellow, orange, and red.

2. Jumping in leaves. Duh. I know it's something little kids do, but I LOVE it.

3. Raking leaves (it's probably one chore I really don't mind all that much... that and laundry).

4. Sweater and jacket weather. I get to bust out my peacoats and sweaters and it makes me really happy. And shopping for new sweaters and such is also a fabulous experience.

5. Halloween. I love Halloween. I love dressing up and being weird, so naturally, I love Halloween. Not to mention, trick-or-treating is incredible. And so is left over Halloween candy.

6. Candy corn. It's my favorite candy, probably 'cause it's just pure sugar.

7. Hot drinks. Coffee, tea, and hot chocolate... I know you can drink these all year round, but having them on a crisp fall day just seems WAY more fitting.

8. School supply shopping. I love shopping for school and new supplies. I love having a fresh new notebook, planner, binders, and pens. Yeah, I'm a nerd.

9. Thanksgiving. I LOVE Thanksgiving. Amazing food. Great family time.

10. Football. Now, I used to not be a huge fan, but since I have come to college, I enjoy the game sooo much more. So yeah, I really do actually enjoy watching football.

11. Baking pumpkin seeds.

12. Carving pumpkins and scooping out all the goop. I just always have this major urge to chuck that stuff at someone's face...

13. Frost in the morning. I love waking up and seeing that little layer of frost on grass, on cars, on trees, and on windows. I think it's great how cold it can be at night but then how mild it is in the day time.

14. NO humidity. Does this need an explanation? I hate sweating when I am not working out.

15. Pumpkin Patches and hayrack rides... NOT scary hay rack rides though.

16. The smell... I don't know if you can smell it or not, but I think fall has a very distinct smell... and I LOVE it. It's like this sweet, woody, almost pumpkin like smell. Ugh, awesome.

17. Apples! Apple picking, apple pie, carmel apples, apple cider... SO good.

18. Going downtown Chicago. There is just something about Chicago in the fall that is so amazing... but so inexplicable at the same time.

19. Hats. I like wearing hats. I don't that often, but I like it when I do.

20. Wearing boots and wool socks.

21. Staying in on cold nights and just watching a movie or reading a book with sweats on and a blanket... or a snuggie...

22. Fireplaces and bonfires. I like fire.

23. Holiday scented candles. Things that smell like baking cookies or anything like that just make my heart melt. I could live without lamps if I could just have hundreds of holiday scented candles around my house... but that's a fire hazard... and I don't like fire THAT much.

24. Harvest moon... so beautiful.

25. Comfort food.

847

It is fall break. Glorious. This means I am back home in Chicago, soaking in my favorite season, spending time with family, going downtown, and sleeping. Two of my friends, Laura and Leah, even came with me because they both have sisters that live here. Laura will be staying with me half way through the week... I am excited to give her a little tour of my hometown :)

Anyways, this is going to be a short little post.

Yesterday, I walked into my room and saw a ton of mail on my desk. I look through it and find one VERY interesting letter from the Circuit Court of Illinois... At first, I thought I was being sued. I don't know what for, but I got worried. Then, when I opened it, that's when I saw my Juror badge... I got a letter for Jury Duty. This made me kind of laugh at first, just because my sister Jackie literally just finished her Jury Duty in Kansas. Well, I don't wanna do it, cause knowing my luck, I would get a murder case that would last 5 months. Hopefully going to school full time in Nebraska will be a good enough reason for me to get excused... we'll see...

Some Will Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape

This is my favorite song. Ever. It moves me literally to tears. UnderOath... You know what's goin' on, THAT'S for sure.

I would love to do what this girl is doing. Just paint for the Lord. Just have HUGE canvases and go crazy. I should really make that investment and find a spot. Because, it is the coolest thing ever.

The second part of this video is of her using painting as a form of worship... AND she is painting to my favorite song. I hope it moves you, both her art and the song. It just awakens in me and reminds me of the beauty of worship and how in ANYTHING you do, you can praise the FATHER. This is definitely something I need to be reminded of every day... especially in conjunction with my thesis.

Enjoy.

Smelly

I'm in the Library avoiding homework. SOOOOOOO, I blog.

I love smells -- Okay, don't be immature with this one. I just love the human nose's ability to pick up little scents. I don't even know the biology or anatomy of it all, I just think it is so cool that God made scent. He made everything and everyone have a different smell. Now THAT'S creative.

Here are my top 10 Favorite Smells:

1. Freshly cut grass

2. Vanilla

3. The air after it rains

4. Coffee

5. Ralph Lauren 'Hot' (perfume)

6. Freshly baked cookies

7. Gasoline

8. Old books

9. Tide laundry detergent

10. Peppermint

Here are my top 10 Least Favorite Smells:

1. Farm. Mainly the cow and pig crap smell.

2. Lemon

3. Cooked ground hamburger

4. Old Lady perfume

5. Wet Dog

6. New Car Scent

7. Old Milk

8. Babies

9. Burnt bread

10. Hand Sanitizer

I Can't Even Put It Into Words...

I am one extremely blessed girl.

Recently, I've been having frequent discussions with friends about how busy I am. Talking about how I just feel like I haven't been taking advantage of my senior year of college the way I should be. I still should be studying and doing well in all my classes, of course, but I feel like I have put relationships on the back burner. I feel like I have not been focused enough on the people in my life and building up relationships with those I care most about. This is a major issue. I think part of me felt like, "Oh, well, I have a lot of good friends and they will understand if I can't always hang out." Or, "Well, it's okay because we are already good friends, nothing should change." If you subconsciously feel this way when you find little time to spend with loved ones, think again people. Think fast. Relationships are a two-way street. They require sacrifice, time, dedication, attention, compassion, honesty, and love. As much as I would love to say my relationships with all my friends and my family are better than they ever have been, I cannot. I know that I have not put in the time and effort that is so vital for relationships to grow and flourish. For this, I apologize to each and every one of you.

I am not perfect and I never will be. But, that doesn't mean that any of you deserve a position in my life that trails behind school, work, and activities. You are all more important than all those things. As much as I want a great GPA and to be involved and active on campus, I would rather leave college with all the memories of all the times I spent with my family and friends than a 4.0. I will want to remember all the stupid games we played, not the tests I failed OR aced. I will want to remember movie nights over the number of service hours I got. I will want to remember hugs over resumes. Relationships are the key to my insanity, so I don't know why I even thought it would be slightly okay to just step away from them for a bit.

I hope you all know how much I truly care about you and your place in my life. Each one of you are irreplaceable, in the world and in my heart (I know. CHEESY. But, 100% true!). You all have given me something that I will always cherish and remember. Thank you for being there for me when I have not always been there for you. Thank you for your compassionate and accepting hearts when I have expressed my feelings and apologies to you. I also want to offer a special "THANK YOU!!!!!!" to everyone who responded to my Senior Thesis questions/interview for my art gallery. Thank you for opening up to me and being honest. Thank you for taking it seriously. Thank you for being inspirational in all you do and say.

God has blessed me with amazing families. A real, biological family that accepts me for my craziness and is always there by my side. These are the incredible individuals who have literally seen me at my worst, yet have loved me deeper than I deserve. A sorority family: a lifelong sisterhood that lights up my life every single day. I truly identify myself as a part of Gamma Phi Beta and I am proud to say it. Thank you for your JOY. Not to mention, the Curtis family who is just remarkable in every way. My church family (and NCC family): Amazing men and women who I have only known for about a year but who have been there through the thick and the thin. They are there to help and encourage me to grow as a woman of Christ. I would not be the same without you. My Creighton Family: You. are. all. REMARKABLE. I have had some of the best moments of my life with you and I pray every single day that I will be able to share MANY more of those moments with you outside of college. Thank you for loving me for me and sharing in my bizarreness. Thank you for being the ones to be laugh WITH me instead of the ones laughing AT me. Most of all, I have a HEAVENLY FATHER who is responsible for everything. I am so lucky to have grown up in the faith. I have seen Him at work and without His love and power, I know I wouldn't be who I am today.

I tried my best to put all this into words, but it still feels insufficient.

I love you all.

Hello Bathtub, Goodbye Phone.

I normally have really good luck with phones- who would have thought?! Remarkably, I am not the type of girl that needs to get a new phone every other month because I either hate the design, lose it, or break it. Yes, I do frequently drop my phone (duh), but I have never actually damaged one. Well, good thing my mom encouraged me to get phone insurance on this last one, because it happened ladies and gentlemen. I broke my phone.

I was nannying yesterday afternoon. Well, it has been raining in Omaha over the past couple of days but despite this, I still let the kids go outside and play. I love the rain. And so do they. Well, yesterday, the little one, Lydia, was running around in the rain and mud while the other three were inside doing homework. When it comes to monitoring, would I rather help with homework or play? DUH- PLAY. Plus... some of their homework I have no idea how to do. Embarrassing? Yes. True? Yes. Oh elementary school and your tricky equations... Sorry, tangent. Anyways, she was outside playing in the mud and it was almost time for her mom to get home so I figured I would call her in so we could clean her up. I filled the bathtub up a couple inches so we could wash her legs and feet (oh, look at me being all maternal!), but I forgot that I had my phone in my back pocket. Well, after washing her feet, I stood up to get a towel and out flies my phone.. It was one of those slow motion moments too... the light blue LG chocolate strategically maneuvers it's way out of my back pocket, glides through the air, flips a couple times, and lands perfectly in the muddy water. The little girl started to giggle. I, however, did not. I yelled and reached in. And there it was... gone. All sad and soaked. I tried drying it off, but now, my battery doesn't work if it's not plugged in, and even then, half of my buttons don't work. I ordered a new phone last night and it should be arriving sometime today.

Not having a cell phone on me at all times is a REALLY strange feeling. I never really considered myself to be one of those people that heavily relies on their phones and technology. Sure, I love the internet, email, facebook, and texting, but I could live without them. I have become so accustomed to having my cell phone constantly by my side, my prime method of communication. Well, not having my cell phone makes me feel so distant from people. I don't know where any one is at, I don't have a land line, I don't know who may be trying to get a hold of me, AND I have no idea what time it is. This is a good learning experience for me. Getting out of my technology world and really feeling and seeing the day go by without responding to random text messages throughout my day or making sure I am always on time. It's a more "go with the flow" type of going about your day. Despite all this, I can't wait to get my new phone.

Another lesson learned? Cell phones like bathtubs. Beware.