Sales...

Wow...I just did my taxes and was expecting a big bill for the entire year of sales tax.  *sigh*  Let's just say it was pitiful.  As an artist, my income was beyond abysmal. What is odd is that I thought I was doing pretty well - all year!  I attribute that to my non-consumerism and somewhat "campy" lifestyle.
By campy, I mean that I do like to go camping.  It is cheap, self sufficient and empowering. I am a member of a ladies camping group called Sisters On The Fly (SOTF) and we meet up all over the country.

 I have met some of the most amazing and beautiful characters! It is truly a joy to participate in the events. I went to the great Smokeys and learned how to make biscuits in a dutch oven. I met real wild wolves in the mountains of New Jersey, along with sisters that made me laugh for the whole visit!.  I learned some incredible local customs and emergency camping and flood skills with my friends in Pennsylvania.  I learned the skills and preparation needed to paint in the wild on Assateague, a barrier island in Maryland.
 
 I have a couple of events already planned for this year.  I hope to go fly fishing in Virginia in a couple months and plan to toddle off to one of my favorite waterfall wonderlands in West Virginia for the Camp Like a Girl event.

I tend to stick to my mid-Atlantic area mainly but I am dreaming of more if I can ever afford a newer vehicle. I really want to go to Maine for an event in September. That brings me back to my point...and now I need to decide which point is more important.  Point one is that my income is abysmal.  Point two is that I barely noticed.

So, with regards to point one; I need to make my art more accessible to my audience.  I guess that means that I need to define my audience a bit more and market my work to those folks.  One of my "sisters" gave me a idea, which I intend to follow.  She suggested that I try a different point of view - which is simply brilliant.  Sallianne, I am on it girlfriend!
Another sister/mentor suggested something that I have been missing - YouTube.  So I think that I will ask friends to take video of me working and start creating videos of my process or working plein air or whatever.  Perhaps I will do something inspirational for someone on video.  I like the idea. Thank you Karen! One never knows what will truly connect with the viewer.

Regarding point two; well, I like my lifestyle.  It minimizes the impact of my own situation and the poverty that is prevalent in my world.  No, I don't wear designer clothes or carry designer bags or dine in fancy restaurants.  But in order to get the photos, the paintings, the artworks that represent my world, I do not need or really desire any of those things.  I like to go camping.  Camping is typically inexpensive, fosters creativity, communication  and is a whole lot of fun.

I do desire and quite possibly need a newer vehicle that I can depend upon to carry me around the country on my little adventures.  My current vehicle is over 10 years old and has over 200k miles.  However, each month my old SUV is free unless I need some maintenance.  I hate to give that up because I am not making enough for a $300 a month payment to some rich banker for a replacement and cannot afford the tires/brakes/upkeep or whatever on top of the payment...So...what to do?  Playing the lottery has odds equivalent to becoming a successful artist in my lifetime so I guess I will keep trying to make beautiful art and improve my sales skills... and play the lottery too.
There;  I just doubled my chances!

Winter Wild

When the land goes dormant and the temperature plummets to where no living thing can feel comfort, I still see beauty and wonder in the wild of my cold mountain.  It is the nature of this planet to have four seasons and I love the winter wild.

Life is everywhere in winter.  Even while chipmunks, turtles, snakes and insects all dig in for a long winter snooze and the bears are sleeping, all the babies are growing strong.
Many birds and other mammals are eeking out their existence in the cold and snow.  Squirrels and nuthatches survive on nuts and seeds that they gathered in the fall.

 Wild turkey meander across the winter fields in search of harvest leftovers.  Deer are wandering and nibbling at the green stems of forest or suburban shrubs.

Cardinals begin their mating rituals, surviving on winter riverside berries and bird feeders.  Eagles and hawks soar above in an endless dance of air borne predator and land bound prey.

This morning I woke to temps around 4 F (-15.5 C) and as I was stoking the fire in the wood stove, I found myself thinking about how wonderful it is to have 4 seasons.

I also think of how appreciative I am for all that I have...a good hubby, warm home, wild critter neighbors, and relative good health to name a few.

 I do worry that the wonderful winters will diminish in this warming world and that I may be one of the last generations of humans to experience and appreciate the beauty of 4 seasons.

 I read that the arctic temps are above freezing and equatorial water temps are approaching the highest ever recorded.   I have seen the world get warmer over the course of my lifetime.
My birthday wish is that all the future years will see a restoration of sanity and that future humans will live in harmony with their world without exploiting it.  It is my birthday wish that the value of wild will be higher than the value of a dollar.