i'm not here anymore...

I'm there. Visit evermeg.com. That's where I'll be posting from now on. Thanks.

A Halloween treat

On the plane back and forth to and from Kentucky, I did some doodling. Then I scanned in the doodles and made some vector illustrations in Adobe Illustrator. This is one that turned out Halloweenish. I'm excited to be doodling again...

On other fronts, still a lot going on. I went to see my family and to go to a 10 year high school reunion. I enjoyed most parts of it, but the reunion wore me out! Hello to all my long lost friends from Woodford County. It was good to see you. I miss Kentucky a lot. But Fall is nice in Colorado right now, so I'm enjoying it!

This is not a well thought-out post. I'll do better another day. Love and peace.

a whirl wind of happenings

Vacation in New Mexico was wonderful. I loved it. We stayed at a place called Sunterra de Taos, a little spa and lodge run by a local lady. She gives massages too, but we didn't take her up on that. This picture is looking outside the window of our "casita." Beautiful.

Lately I haven't been enjoying my job. Mostly because we have been short a person (or two) in our department for going on a year now. And it's finally catching up and overwhelming us. Being in a Christian non-profit means an uphill climb to find the right person who will accept lower pay but still have the skills. It's crazy hard. I've never hired anyone before, so this is a new experience for me and one that I'm not too excited about repeating.

Also, I've been super conscience lately about material possessions and how much I have and how much I throw away. Being an American it is so freakin hard not to buy something that doubles its weight in packaging that you just throw away. I try to recycle but why all the packaging in the first place. I've been reading Sex God lately by Rob Bell (it's one of the 5 books I'm in the middle of reading) and he writes a bit about that and it really got me thinking of how I can be aware of this and do something about it. I'm still working out exactly how to. If anyone has ideas or a responses to this I'd love to hear them.

And... I've also been spending many waking (and sleeping moments) lately working www.evermeg.com. I purchased that url practically 6 months ago. So... I might neglect this blog til I finally get it done. Thanks to those of you who have "held me to it" like I asked in a previous post. I need all the motivation I can get.

Well friends... I just ran 4 miles this morning during the Denver Marathon. I ran with my friend, Jherysa, who is running the whole thing. I'm gonna go meet her at the finish line now so gotta go. I have a lot of respect for people who can run a Marathon. My puny 4 miles almost killed me.

Vay-cation

Woohoo. I'm going to New Mexico. Adam and I are traveling to the Taos area for 4 days. Adam says this isn't enough time to call it a vacation, but I say if I'm off work and I'm chillin' with my homey and taking in some peace and relaxation, it's all about vacation. I'll post pics and the sort when I get back.

You liked that "chillin' with my homey" part, huh? Yes, I'm a first class dork.

Thought I'd post a couple links to illustrators that I've been looking at lately. I like their stuff:

alexnoriegasketchblog.blogspot.com/
jaimezollars.com/wordpress

And then there's:

sugarfrostedgoodnes.blogspot.com
Which I haven't spent too long figuring out what this is, why this blog exists, or how anyone would become a member of the blog, but I look at the pictures and sometimes I say "wow!"

everyone knows the meaning of "today sucks," right?

It's later at night. I'm tired. I've had an terribly long day. And pretty much the majority of today has sucked. There you have it. Anyway. We've taken a break from the Old Testament lately at our Bible study and have been watching Nooma videos. We watched one tonight about Breathing (Breath) and how constant that is and how God is there as constant as our breath. Hard to see that sometimes. But He is, in a way. Of course, always.

That's my right brain reflection for today.

Also, I just had a discussion with Adam about art masters. (you people who roll your eyes at my artiness can skip this...) Of course the artist that I find as the most masterful is Rembrandt. And Adam says there can't be any artist that is more masterful that Rembrandt and he urged me to name one. And I said maybe others could argue Picasso, but I can't really come up with another one. Maybe you can.

I've also been reading this retired minister's blog. I find many of his reflections interesting. Sometimes hit or miss for me but at least I thought I'd pass it along.

May you get a minor glimpse of peace today. Or maybe a major one?

(BTW... this blog is under a bit of construction... :)

Some random lately happenings...

Went to the Denver Art Museum twice a couple of weeks ago. Once by myself, once with my brother. I've been reflecting on that experience a bit lately. The several hours I went by myself proved a really good experience for me. I took time to just stand in front of the paintings and really think about the process that the painter took. I stood in front of the DAM's not-so-well known Picasso and a few other Cubist and Impressionist painters that you might know. Though the Denver Art Museum's collection of these is not exceptionally well-known, I particularly enjoyed it. I think I particularly enjoy seeing little-known works because it helps me realize that even the biggest names out there had works that weren't masterpieces. And sometimes these type of paintings give a more intimate look into an artist, into life. At least, that's what I see.

I enjoyed going with Seth, and I think he liked the experience a lot. He and I have a similar eye for art. I was so glad to be there with him seeing him enjoy it as much as he did.

African Art
The afternoon that Seth and I went together we saw an African Painting that was so colorful and rich, that I was really surprised I didn't see it when I went the day before. I was glad I had gone a second time so I didn't miss it. The artist's name is Moyo Ogundipe and he has a website. The painting was called Soliloquy: Life’s Fragile Fictions. I love the name of the painting for one. The details were really amazing to me as well.

Doing
I've been learning a lot about the process of "doing" lately... the processes that an artist, or a creator, or a builder, or a researcher takes to do their work. And to do it with perfection or mastery takes a lot of time.

Finding the Color in things
I really liked these pottery pieces that I picked up the other day at the Lakewood Arts festival - one of the "quaintest" festivals I've been to in a long time. I admired this lady's work - she did them in her basement and made the impressions with doilies. Her business card says her company is called Anasazi Spirits. After taking them home, I realized how intricately colorful they are. I had to use the Photoshop color picker and get an array:


I loved the blue hues I found. Maybe these colors inspire something in you.

Causes on FaceBook

Do you do FaceBook? It's the new (and cleaner) MySpace. (See, don't I sound all hip and cool.) Anyway, I recently joined up, and they have a new application called Causes on it. It allows people to spread the word about their cause. So for example - say you really want to help people learn about foster care and the importance of kids finding a good home, then you could start your cause and people can join in, have conversations about it, tell their friends about it, and give money to a specific charity that supports foster care, locally or internationally. I wanted to mention it here because, being big into the Non-Profit world, I'm excited about applications like this and how that will change non-profits and how they raise money and awareness. Read more about Causes and then maybe you'll want to join in. I normally don't suggest social networking things. Usually they seem here one day, crazy the next, in the tabloids the next, and gone the next. But, this causes thing is interesting. I started a Cadence cause to see how it goes. If you get on FaceBook you can look it up or look me up.

Wisconsin... I love.

June in Wisconsin is like paradise. Though it was humid and hot, I really enjoyed the destination of my trip. I went there for work, and drove with a couple other coworkers and volunteers. I actually enjoyed the drive too. Seeing Nebraska, Iowa, and Minnesota was really interesting. Living in the middle of the city and/or suburbs I hardly ever think about the rural areas (the hundreds of miles of rural areas) that provide food and energy for us all! I've been trying to think what the actual driving was like. I enjoyed it thoroughly, but can't exactly explain why. Driving on the highway was like a subtly changing scene. Kind of a long, long artsy film where 500 different shades of green and brown flow into eachother slowly. It certainly gave me ideas for painting.

Anyone know why most barns are red? We had this question while driving. I found these answers, but it seems that there must be more than that. Hmm...

Of the 4 states I drove through, Wisconsin was my favorite. It was like the farmland tropics. For real. It was lush and green green green. And full of fields that rolled and looked they went on forever beyond the hills.

It's raining, it's pouring, somewhere

amazingly... it's been raining quite a bit in Colorado lately. It completely poured a few days ago. The grass and trees are really green, and I'm absolutely soaking it up. However, this does not mean our planted plants are growing super-naturally or anything (just the weeds). The flowers and plants are still kind-of dried and slow-going. It's taken a lot of patience for me to wait for the little buds to open up, but slowly they are.

I do love rain. Honestly, some days, more than sun. I love how it sounds. I love how it feels. When I went to Texas a couple months ago it POURED and Adam and I had to walk for a half hour through it, and it felt so good and wet. I also remember sitting on the back porch of the old historic house I used to work at on rainy days and just watch the rain. I remember it being thick in the air and you couldn't see very far into the garden behind the house.

If it's raining where you are, please go take a walk in it (without an umbrella)!

work

I work at Cadence International. I've had several varied jobs since college and before college. Typist, resident hall advisor, legal assistant, education and marketing coordinator, volunteer coordinator, ice cream scooper. However, now I tell most people I meet that the job I have now is the best I've ever had. Why, you may ask? Because I find a lot of purpose in what I'm doing moreso than I ever have before, and I get to use my humble talents and interests to do it. I can see every day in a visual and tangible way that what I'm doing is helping people know more about Christ.

I was recently reading through a journal I kept about 5 years ago. (Beware: Whenever I write long "thinky thoughty" journal entries I am at super emotional points in my life.) In this entry I was writing down all the things I want to "do" in my life. One thing on the list was "write and illustrate a children's book," one was "be a mom" and another was "work for a missionary organization." There were many others, however that last one kind-of floored me. I used to want to "BE" a missionary. In my small-town-mindedness I didn't completely understand what that meant. However I think it's interesting that I said "work for a missionary organization" instead of "be a missionary," and I find it odd where I am right now.

I fought and wrestled with God a lot when I came to Colorado (see my "old blog"). And though I'm not so keen on sappy happy endings, and don't believe that everything always gets wrapped up neatly with a red bow (here anyway), it does make me wonder. Did God have my desires and best interest at heart all along? There are days when I know He does, and there are days I feel so hopelessly alone. When I reflect on this one point about my job and my purpose, however, it does give me a seed more of hope than when I didn't realize this.

I'm praying for a few people right now that are in hard situations. I pray for them, though it may take time, for God to show them a bit of this kind of hope.

The Planet Earth

I watch tv more than I want to, however, I have never exactly been inspired and in awe of a tv show. There are some funny shows, and most often I watch tv for entertainment and "forgetting the world." But then enter.... Planet Earth.

We've been tivo-ing this show and this past weekend The Discovery Channel did a marathon of the 11 current episodes. Woot! I was so excited.

My favorites have been the ones about underwater. It's totally mind boggling to think that there are male botos (dolphins) in the Amazon river right now flaunting rocks and stones around in the their mouths to attract the females. (I don't know, maybe not right now - it might not exactly be mating season, but you get the idea.) We never get to really see what all happens under the water, and it's a completely other world. I mean not only are there people on the other side of the world, but there are areas in the world where there are not people, but there are millions of creatures I don't know about, you don't know about. And I thought just thinking that there were billions of humans in the world was overwhelming.

I am so amazed at this Earth - at this place we think we have access to by the internet and television, but really, we don't know even have an idea about the nooks let alone the crannies. I can't wait to watch the Caves episode. I suggest checking it out and find your favorite.

a website in the works

evermeg.com is up, however not exactly "running." I just wanted to mark my progress with it. So far, I've merely purchased the url and signed on with a hosting company. But I've also been designing it- which is extra fun. Nothings much is up yet, but it will be something someday. I hope to get it all going well with links to some of my work and a working journal/blog. So hold me to it, will you? I need some accountability.

SXSW: In Over My Head, or Dork Among Geeks, or Now My Eyes Are Wide Open

I met a lot of people at SXSW, but obviously not as many as most of the attendees. I have to say it was overwhelming. Quite overwhelming, and I only went to two of the after-hours events and skipped half a day of the conference for my birthday.

As a newbie to all of this web design and development stuff, I felt like a real dork. Half the information flew over my head, and going from session to session was a total fast-forward blur. If I go next year, and in some ways I hope I will, I think it will be easier and maybe more helpful. I think it took one time for me to just get over the "culture-shock" of having 3,000 super-intelligent, uber-excited web gurus swimming in mass around me (and realizing I was becoming one of them).

What was good:
1. Leaving the conference and at least feeling like I knew what everyone was talking about. This was big boost for me as I feel like I've been scrambling to understand simple concepts for the past 6 months. (and my husband, Adam, who came with me and gleefully watched movies in our hotel room most of the time, really had no clue.)

2. The Godbit dinner. It was nice to meet these people, even though I hadn't spoken to any of them online or in real life before.

3. Austin, Texas. I've never been before, but it is a great place. I might just have to go back to SXSW just to visit. I'm glad I had a chance to see a new place while attending a conference.

What was hard:
1. Meeting people. Not hard as in there was nobody to meet. Hard as in I'm quite introverted around large groups, and like I said above it was overwhelming.

2. Learning new terms. Now this is where I look like a big dork. I honestly didn't know what these terms really meant until I looked them up online: web 2.0, SEO, ajax, etc. So at least now I know.

What I would suggest:
1. I hated those half-hour sessions. Talk about overwhelming. I would suggest more lengthy, quality sessions, instead of power-packed punches where the presenter just reads off their blog.

2. If you go, pick your hotel wisely. The closer the better.

Though we're strangers

Though we're strangers, still I love you
I love you more than your mask
and I know you have to trust this to be true
and I know that's much to ask
So lay down your fears
Come and join this feast
He has called us here, you and me
lyrics by Rich Mullins

I'm an old school Christian music lover. Rich Mullins lyrics have a big place in my life as a teenager and early adult. Tonight, Rachel, the singing gal at church quietly sang these words during communion. The music started and it hit me like a stone in the head. A rush of memories came swelling in and then reminders of the relationships God gives us. Relationships of strangers, of friends, of fellow believers and those who do not. Reminders of the beauty that calls us together during communion, the rejoicing and hope also. Reminders too that Jesus is really the forgiving God I've known him to be. I forget his forgiveness often. But I remember it tonight. It's bright tonight for me.

"And His outstretched arms are still strong enough"

Remember you are dust...

Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return. It's a reminder that this time last year really stuck with me at the Ash Wednesday service. It sticks with me again. The ashes they are sticky, clingy; they linger and last -- Ann Lamott wrote about this (see previous post regarding: Traveling Mercies). They are dead, but remind us of life. Last night as they were put on my forehead in the shape of a cross the black ashes were wet and gritty. I feel fairly wet and gritty at my core.

Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return -- Translation for me: Remember you are alive only by the grace of God and someday you will die, you will die and your body will return to the earth, but your soul, your soul is forever alive, by the grace of God.

A sunday morning

Now is morning. The sun is warm and the blue sky is streaked with lines of clouds. There are people on the other side of the world I care about, there are friends and family who I miss. And I am here alone at a computer. How the wide world can seperate.

I am mentoring a young girl. She is seven. She is a new fresh breath to me. To see such innocent eyes, to hear her tears and worries and troubles (and they are not little mind you) just makes me really think but also love what relationships can do. I asked her who her best friend was and she answered, "You." How the heart can soften.

Hope the day is well for you and you find someone to listen to your fears.

Diary of a girl

Adam and I have been going through some of our childhood things. Re-boxing them, organizing. I opened a box with a couple diaries I had. The "Get to know me" diary, and the Ramona Quimby diary. Interestingly they are both from the year my mom died. In them I wrote some big "secrets" such as liking boys (Jeff Kincaid and Nathan Todd), but I also wrote some more intimate things, some sad things I don't remember really dealing with at age 8. I wrote several times that I was really sad because so-and-so didn't want to play with me. Two months after my mom died I wrote: "I haven't wrote in my Diary for so very long because my mom died of cancer and I'm not feeling good eather. I just can't wait till Christmas in our new house but mama didn't get a chance to have Christmas in our new house..." (November 21, 1987)

Reading the entries, it seems so weird how much I am still the same person I was when I was eight and nine (just without the highly embarassing crushes). When I grew up I wanted to be an "artist or architect," and I considered myself "easy-going" "neat and organized" as well as "messy... but lovable" and "a day person." That's weird to me. In all the ways I've grown over the past 20 years, I guess I'm still very much the same person.

Also, right now, I'm reading Traveling Mercies by Anne Lamott. It's good. Pure. I love good writing and especially when that good writing tells an impeccable story. True stories told well. Ahhh... that's the stuff. I'm not finished reading it, but from the experience so far, I think I can recommend it. You should check it out from your local library or borrow it from a friend for 3 months like I have done.

Ummm... Blizzard

Back to back blizzards in Denver. I've been off of work for 4 extra days than I intended, with time off for Christmas and next week I'll get off for New Years. There are days when I'm working at my job and I dream of weeks like this where I can do some long-awaited personal work. When I have long days of nothing to do, and I can focus on painting, drawing, creating. However, these snowed-in days haven't been all that productive. I continue the procrastination.

A few weeks ago, though, I started a couple small projects. Some of them are Christmas gifts (that don't need to be done until I see my family next week) and a couple are just experiments. Here they are. Unfinished. I still have a few days to look forward to being off work and stop the procrastination. I'll try.

The experiment has begun

This website has been a long time in dreaming. I hope to use this website to encourage me to “get something out there.” That is where my biggest obstacle is. Being open enough to really share my heart and welcome others’ inspiration, advice, criticism, and even possibly praise. But, I want to overcome that. It has amazed me for some time how transparent people allow themselves to be on the web. It’s scary actually, to know all of you is there to be seen. I’m not the kind of writer, artist, or person to hide. So here is where you’ll find true and honest glimpses of me. I just hope now I can live up to that true desire to be honest. Please check back.