So its been quite the break here on the blog...
a six month break which I certainly never planned
but somehow the time just ran away and before I knew it, it felt like the blog was just one thing too many in a sea of too much on my plate.
But I missed it, and then I felt like it had been too long since I posted so I should abandon it or I couldn't really just start again could I, but then I just thought bugger it the blog is something I love and miss so I am going back in baby
In many ways the website, business and my professional life in general has taken precedence for six months. Its been fun and quite the ride
but now it is time to reclaim a bit of a personal space back, and for me that is blogging.
Sharing my life in long form again
not just in an Instagram photo or story, a Facebook post or a Pin
but sharing the words as well as the pictures
so I've done a bit of a spruce up with the look of things here, though like all things it's a work in progress...but I am back in the swing...
so whats been happening you may wonder... well lots actually...
The house renovations were epic
and it looks fabulous if I do say so myself.
Is it finished? ... not quite... in fact lots of little things still to go, but all the construction is done, and it is all fun stuff really and we are taking our time and enjoying the finishing touches and even though it's not quite finished the house is transformed
I will share some pics over coming posts because I do love it
It feels like the house really reflects us as a family now and it is light and fresh and open
not that we were all dark and gloomy before, but it just feels better
Gone are the dark floors, scary downstairs bathroom and dated kitchen, and the rarely used dining room has become a space we practically live in
So overall it is a joy to come home too.
Was it stressful?... at times
Did the tradies drive me nuts? ... sometimes
Did it feel like we would never live free of dust and debris? ... often
Was it fun?... mostly
Was it worth the time and money and sheer exhaustion it led to? ... totally
We love it...
In the interim lots of other changes have been happening as well
Barry has completely won our hearts and has proved to be gloriously odd
and surprisingly snugly for a cat that lived as a stray for so many years
he is certainly a healthy sod now, some may even say a tad portly
but he is also magnificent
Sinus Man is still snoring like a trucker
teasing all and sundry and asking us to pull his finger regularly
and Barry has learned to tolerate being woken up and cuddled at odd times and also being patted with enthusiasm and vigor by Sinus
they are forming quite the friendship it would appear
Phants, that sweet and slightly odd little girl
that so many of you have gotten to know over the years turned 21
scary right?
she is still the same weirdo... just an old weirdo now
and her and Barry make quite the pair as she has somehow trained him to be the most dog like cat I have ever come across
There have been lots of work changes too
I have a solo exhibition locked in for next year
the online store has been booming
commissions and illustration work kept me very busy
and even Etsy has managed some sales
people continue to trickle into the online classes
and I now have an agent who looks after wholesale sales
which has been a steep learning curve and it has certainly kept me busy
and in general I paint and create lino prints at every opportunity
in short my creative life is full and happy
But the biggest change is personally
Cancer returned a few months ago and now we are deep into chemo again to shrink the bastard tumours that spread from a single cell that escaped treatment of a few years ago when lefty went rogue and now breast cancer has appeared in my liver
which sucks... I'm not going to lie and say it is all ok... cause some days it really isn't
and I get very pissed at the unfairness of it, and sad to be in this position again
hearing words like incurable are shattering, and life altering and scary in the extreme
but then there is such advances in treatments and what used to be a quick-ish slide now is treatable for many many years, and especially when caught insanely early as it was with me
and while it sucks being bald again
and chemo is not any prettier, there are gifts as well
there is hope and advances in treatment every day
I can expect years between invasive treatments thanks to clever clogs researchers
trials also offer hope of even more time, and the changes in just a few short years are mind boggling, so the plan is to embrace all the advances and hang around for a good long time.
The confidence of the doctors and treatment staff is inspiring and keeps me positive
plus I have an incredible team and such support around me
And you know what it does focus you and gets you thinking about what is important
granted it is quite the extreme way to reassess your priorities
but its always a good thing to stop and look at what you are doing and decide what's important right...
and one of the things I kept coming back to was missing blogging
so here I am...
happily back in blog land
So you are all caught up... kind of
and it feels good to be back
actually it feels fricking great...
happy painting all... xx
