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 campfire on the first day of vacation

Oh my freakin goodness is about all I have energy to utter at this point. I suddenly realized last night that in the last 8 days I took 11 teens to cape cod for 3 days, facilitated 155 teens going to UMass and Amherst College, took 10 teens to Senior Design Day at UMass ECE, and spent at least 5 hours trying to determine where and when we are going to the UK this summer. OMG! When I am this tired I completely regress to the 8th grade level of articulation. Just thinking about it makes me want to go back to sleep.

Thankfully I do not have a lot to do this weekend.

These are some of my favorites from going to the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens on April 19 and the Cape Cod trip last weekend.

yes, they did go in and, yes, it was freezing

Grading

I was supposed to be grading…

but how could I focus when this is what surrounded me?

Thankfully I did better once the sun set. I finished everything I brought home for the weekend. I’m still behind, but I made a dent!

Terrain Inspiration

During my trip to NJ in February A, N, and I took a trip to Terrain at Styer’s. I had seen it featured in Domino magazine and then discovered it was not far away. I found it even more amazing than the glossy pictures in the magazine made it seem. It was a delight for all the senses. (click thumbnails for a better look)

Rain It Has

1 field trip down, 4 to go.
30 weeks down, 10 to go. 

I like to tell myself that my art and my teaching balance me and that I would never be complete with just one or the other. In truth, I just feel split in two. When I fully focus on one area, the other suffers…or my health suffers. I have not read a single art blog in over 3 weeks. I don’t even know where the last 3 weeks have gone…or do I? Symbiosis skits, 5 field trips planned,  physical therapy, migraines, planning a trip to the UK, MCAS, and rock climbing. That is where the time went. I am sewing still, but there has been no paint, no shirts, and no new designs. 

And ignoring school is what brought me to these past stress-filled weeks. I ignored grading and paperwork and paid for it in worrying this week as I stalked the main office waiting for that paperwork to be approved. 

Its not that I feel I have to figure out what to do about being split. I am learning to trust the process of life and the journey planned. I just feel split like a little seed. I have potential, my life ahead of me and all that, but I am two seperate cotyledons in a little shell with a sprout headed up and out of the soil. Reflecting more on the dicot seed I am realizing that as the seed goes on with its life those two cotyledons often become the first leaves and slowly bring forth the mature adult plant. I don’t know what that means. All I know is that I feel like a little dicot seed with two distinct parts as I continue on towards the sun.

To Do Tomorrow (I have Good Friday off; yay for catholic cities!)
Post Bulb Show and Terrain Photos
Find projector to purchase for youth group
Finalize retreat plans
Grading (darn it!)
Clean out fridge
Buy gas mask to use while cleaning out fridge
Take dogs hiking
Stretch
Figure out Easter meal plans
Wash pots (every single one is dirty…)

Here Comes the Rain

…Literally and Figuratively.

It is currently raining and I hear it getting more intense as it patters down on the roof above my head. But it is also April and I will not be resting until June is come and gone. Ahead of me I have three hard months of things I love and a sprinkling of things I don’t. 

Short list:

5 field trips for a total of 7 days out and about (3 outdoor club, 2 academic)

MCAS (read: crazy-making)

MCAS review projects, Science Fair, phenology study, and environmental films

S.E.D.A.T.E. (Special Edition Daily Announcements and Television Entertainment; our spoof news show which requires rehearsing the day before) 

Youth Group retreat

Summer Travel Plans 

…and my stress-relieving activity is making more clothes. Like this top I finally finished.

 

I need to sleep or I will never make it. But I am also trying to get out and enjoy this lovely weather.  Yesterday I took the dogs up to the cliffs. It was the little pup Basil’s first time all the way up. Such a cutie! But definitely a little too comfortable at the edge. Curious puppy better watch his step. (note: he was safe, don’t worry)

 

I just love this shot.

Queen Lexi the Greatest

Florence Shirt from b+j greene

Yesterday I finished a batch of the second of the hometown shirts:
the Florence Shirt.

If you missed the first one, I am creating a set line of shirts named after towns I have lived in or near. I will still do custom orders as requested, but streamlining is essential in my busy life.

This second shirt is named after Florence, Massachusetts. I lived in Florence for one year while my parents flipped a house (I was 2 years-old), but Florence is important to me for other reasons. 

Its Description:

Florence, Massachusetts is a quaint and quiet village within the city of Northampton. As a child my family would take the village’s bike path to Look Park. Look Park is a classic old park with pedal boats, a playground, ball fields, a little zoo, and a small train (don’t forget to yell when you go under the bridge!). Years later as a teenager, the time I spent in Florence helped lay the foundation for my current creative endeavors. Florence is where I learned more about SLR cameras (shooting in black and white), how to compose using the rule of thirds, and how to use Photoshop at a basic but helpful level. It was there that I first watched a photographer work, glimpsed the creative process, and saw the possibilities of digital imaging. In my mind, it is the combination of rural beauty and digital media that makes Florence a special place.

I have three of these available at this time (small, medium, and large). The shirt shown is a medium. They are available on our etsy store: bandjgreene.etsy.com 

Personal Note:
It is very challenging to capture these shirts in one photograph for Etsy because the whole point is usually that there is stuff on the back too. Oh well. I will just continue to hope that people click and look at more of the pictures.

Presenting! Lexi & Basil’s Snow Day

So this film certainly took less time and is less artistic than the last. This film is more for Bernie and Jeff who loved our dogs before we had the wonderful opportunity to have them in our life. They are doing great. So if you love dogs, animal rescues, or Bernie’s work please sit back and enjoy these cuties play!

Presenting! Birds Will Sing Again

Right now I am all about finishing projects because I have started so many I am beginning to feel a little unwound.

SO…(drumroll please!) I present to you the film I started this fall and just finished:
Birds Will Sing Again

I started this film this fall when one day after school I was struck by the beauty of the leaves outside and in my haste grabbed the camcorder instead of the camera (it was closer) and began filming. First I filmed the trees with the light on them. Then birds appeared and I filmed them. Then the farmer was haying, a man was sitting on a hay bale, the horses were out, bugs were buzzing, the sun set, and a few days later the sky was filled with hot air balloons. The film filmed itself as it all magically fell into place before me.

All I had to do was pick the song, a song I have loved since I was small. The song is called Inland Sailor and was written and performed by Brooks Williams. Brooks is a friend of my family and lives here in the same valley. In fact, as part of our view I can point out the neighborhood he and his family used to live in. I will never grow sick of hearing his music. It always makes me happy and I have so many fond memories and feelings of security attached to his music. There is a picture of me asleep in my car seat in front of a speaker when he was recording one of his first albums. I used to fall asleep at his concerts at the Iron Horse when I lived around the corner and was small enough for it to be acceptable to drift off in public. Years later he played in our wedding ceremony and the lyrics to All That is Gold were on the wedding invitations I designed. And some day my future children will fall asleep to his music too.

The entire film was shot from our backyard. That is our view. That is our stream. Those are our bird friends. That is the hayfield next door. Those are the hot air balloons that glide across the valley. I love where we live (with the exception of the frigid air out there right now). It was actually nice to come back to this film when there is no color at all outside (except the blue sky). It reminded me that the leaves will be back and so will the annoying bugs. And the birds will sing once again.

Good Things To Be Hooked On

I am so glad to have a week off. Part of vacation will be spent with friends and the cutest baby ever. The other part will be devoted to organizing…and art of course.

Latest obsession: sewing. It has been consuming all my home time, until yesterday when the piece I was working on went all wrong and I had to take half of it apart (the half that took me longer to do). Now I’m not so sure of myself but I will probably keep at it. This is the skirt I made on Sunday from of a vintage dress I got at a flea market.

Then I randomly got hooked on taking self portraits. Here are two.

And we had a nice valentine start to my vacation. Vday dinner was flat bread pizzas courtesy of Domino Magazine inspiration. (have I told you how much I am going to miss Domino??) B and I have been trying to eat lighter with more vegetables (fresh when possible) so this was along that theme. Out toppings were gruyere, goat cheese, arugula, prosciutto, and caramelized onions.

All Thing New

Two beautiful pieces of art are twisting together in my mind to form stunning pictures of the very things I need to keep in my mind to survive.

One, is this song by Brooke Fraser, titled Shadowfeet. It is simply beautiful and totally stuck in my head. I forgot how much hope-filled music can make a difference in my survival and outlook on life.

 

Second, is the incredible performance by Hubbard Street Dance Chicago that I went to with K and L tonight. Words cannot describe the incredible combination of fluid motions and perfect musical synchronicity. It was stunning to watch and a pleasure to remember.I was particularly captivated by one of their dancers, Penny Saunders, for her obvious love of dancing and enjoyable style. I’m not a dance critic nor do I know much about it, but she was perfect.  This clip features my favorite of the three dances that they performed, Strokes Through the Tail. Penny is the one girl in the beginning.

 

Todays thoughts:
Banish blame, dance like no one’s watching, and live without burden…for the burden has been taken from you.