International Women's Day

International Women's Day journal page. The prompt I was working on was "primary". The librarian in automatically thinks of primary documents. So I chose two from the National Archives - one of suffragettes marching on Bastille Day (they ended up in jail) and the amendment to grant women the right to vote. Keep marching. No accepting backsliding. Thanks to the women who came before and paved our way. 

#internationalwomensday #strongwomen#adaywithoutwomen #wearred#wearredforwomen#artmarks30daychallenge #artjournal#artjournaling #artjournaleveryday#artjournalmixedmedia

Intention

 These days I don't hear many people talk about making New Year's Resolutions. A trend I have seen over the last few years is the tradition of choosing a guiding word for the year. I have been intrigued by this idea, but didn't think I'd do it until several things occured to make my word find me rather than the other way around.

1. I was telling my child about how some people do this. I remember where I was on the road when this conversation took place. I then said "I don't know what word I would choose unless it was...." and out the word popped. What a surprise!

2. The next day I was reading the blog All of Me and her post was about, surprise, her guiding word. She also posted a link to Susannah Conway's Find Your Word for 2016. I promptly signed up, went through the process and ended up with exactly the same word. It was a great process, one I would highly recommend. Thanks Lynette and Susannah!

My guiding word for 2016 is Intention. 

While there are plenty of other worthy words out there, I know what I need this year is Intention. There are so many demands. So many tasks that need doing, or seem to need doing. There is no way to fit them all in. So being guided by living intentionally I may start being buffeted less by the winds that blow and start charting my own course with more accuracy. 

I want to be intentional about my work, my family, my art and about my living space. I am sure I will find more ways in which intention enhances my experience of my life. 

So when I finally got down to doing my warm up page for Life Book 2016 (I need a little more intention to get that rolling) I knew that my message would have the word Intention front and center. 

I want to make sure I make time for creating. The intent is that I fit it in every day. It is like meditation for me. 

More often I'm intentional about whether a thing, activity, obligation really has a place in the life I want to live. There are still winds of unexpected changes, but I am starting to choose more carefully. 

Mad Tea Party 2015 - Double Vision

"Please come for tea" the March Hare says fixing his beautiful, shiny eyes upon you. How can you resist?

Flowers blossoming in ways that are marvelous to behold.

He hops along the path that leads to a most intriguing setting for tea. 

He moves so fast he is almost transparent. Where did he go? Where has he left you?

As you move through the garden the tea cups seem to appear out of the flowers. 

Suddenly there they are - teacups! But big enough to swim in. 

So you dance on the rim feeling a kind of amazed exuberance. 

It's odd, the flowers seem to talk. You must be getting sleepy. 

Walking through the handle of the teacup. When did you get so small? Or did the teacup grow?

You search for the March Hare and think you see his eyes looking back at you even as you make it to the tea table. 

You are so tired you rest on some of the sweets!

You may be tired, but the March Hare is busy taking tea. 

The teacups are shrinking. Is this good or bad?

You need to get back home. Maybe the stone bridge will take you there. 

Instead you are led to the tunnel in the bay. 

You are asked to stay, but you'd prefer to go home and have a cup in a safe place where you know what to expect. 

Ahhh! This cup is just Assam. 

(A variety of apps were used in the making of this tea party. Diana App for double exposure. Snapeee for decorating. Comics Camera for high contrast.)

Models: Sir Fernly as the March Hare. Madeleine Ooka as You. Lynda Shoup as the talking flower. 

Location: Many of the photographs were taken at Blithewold Mansion and Arboretum in Bristol, Rhode Island. As magical a place as ever existed. Don't believe me? Go for their Fairy Festival on August 2nd and see for yourself!

Mother's Day Gelli Prints - Stamping and Printing Sunday

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers and to the fathers out there who have to fill in a mother's shoes. 

I wanted to send you flowers so here are a couple of gelli printed flowers. I don't know whether I will leave them as is or whether I will choose to fill them in. 

 My family had our meal out yesterday and so today was a lovely day for sleeping in. Just what I wanted! 

I hadn't gelli printed in a few weeks and I was eager to do some. Here are some of my favorites from today. 

I love the prints as they are, as part of my art journaling, and also as a layer in my double exposure photos. I love the way they combine with other photos. 

I hope you had a lovely Mother's Day. It was great for me to celebrate yesterday (less crowd in the restaurant) and have today to loll about. If you could plan your own Mother's Day event, what would be most meaningful to you? Now that you've thought about it, how about asking for it?

100th Post Party

This is the 100th post on Reclaiming my Boho Mojo. It seemed like  a landmark worth commemorating, but how to mark the event? 

Looking back on the reasons for reviving this blog, several reasons stood out: 

- to connect with others
- to create community

Posting more often has become more routine. Connecting with others and creating community are things I need to expand. 

So to celebrate this 100th post, I plan to visit 100 blogs or websites and leave comments. Hopefully this will help cement the habit of responding to the inspiration I find in the work of others instead of thinking I'll come back to it when I have more time. 

Giving Way to Thankfulness

Last week I was invited by a dear artist friend to participate in Flood the Streets With Art. FSWA is the brainchild of Scott Wong. The grassroots art event challenges artists all over the world to counteract the Black Friday Madness by giving away a piece of their art - Free. And to whomever finds it.  
https://www.facebook.com/events/649474495168252/

It fits in very nicely with the sort of thing that I love over at Kind Over Matter.

To tell the truth, I've not been creating much lately. I've been a bit overwhelmed and under-creative. I was kind of in an art slump. The invitation revitalized me, however, and though it was just a small thing I completed a broach that I hope someone is enjoying right now. I hope it is just the right sort of person. I'm tempted to go back to the grocery store where I left it to see if it is still there. 

I am so thankful that this opportunity came my way. It shook me out of my stupor and got me moving. Giving away things always makes me feel grateful. What a wonderful way to experience Thanksgiving. 

Time for a Tea Party – a Mad Tea Party

Years ago I read about The Mad Tea Party blog event sponsored by Vannessa at  A FancifulTwist in Artful Blogging Magazine. I’ll admit, I was enchanted. The photos I saw were vibrant, creative, sparkling, entrancing. I was smitten.

When Google Reader retired and I switched over to DiggReader, I ended up catching up on some blog reading. There it was, The Mad TeaParty Invitation on Vannessa’s blog. And it was only one week away. With my already busy schedule would I be crazy to fit it in? Yes, well, maybe. Am I going to try? Of course! I may not come close to creating the kind of vision I saw others post in years past, but you have to start somewhere. So this is the year.

Saturday, look forward to a crazy tea filled post from me. 

Welcome 2013, Year of the Snake

Scratching itches

Scabs fly free

Scaly skin escapes

Slithering

Swirling

Spiraling forward

Sharp incisors

Slick sleek tongue

Sick saliva spraying

Scintillating

Sparkly

Spectacular

Snake, I see you

I succumb

Spurred on by strange circumstances

Softly you surround me

Silkily you insinuate

Reasons I should celebrate

Silently after a season of storms

You sneak in shrewdly

Showering serenity and possibility.

Sheep, You Are Safe from Me

Today I celebrate my 30 years as a vegetarian. The last carnivorous meal I had included lamb chops. My impetus for beginning was my health, not the welfare of animals. I began in a time when we all read Diet for a Healthy Planet and The Moosewood Cookbook was fresh off the presses. Growing your own sprouts was popular and I even bought mesh lids and gave it a try. Mostly, I forgot they were around until it was too late.

I have appreciated the reports that say the vegetarian diet will save fuel, is cleaner and makes for a safer and more equitable food supply. These are nice benefits to have for something I’m doing for my own reasons. Believe me when I say, I don’t deny the claims that vegetarians are better looking and look younger!

I have been macrobiotic, ovo, lacto, pesco or dietarily vegan at different times during the years. I remember going to Whole Earth Expo 1982 in New York City and coming in contact with many different philosophies I had never heard of before – Raw Foods, Sproutarians, and others. I remember how surprised I was at the sweet taste of sprouted bread.

Some trends in vegetarian food have come and gone. Some remain constant. I’m grateful that it is much easier to find vegetarian options and the improved labeling.

If I had never become a vegetarian I would not have trod the path I did. I would probably not have studied cooking at Lima Cooking School in Tokyo nor the Kushi Institute in Becket, Massachusetts. I wouldn’t have learned to cook from so many wonderful people including Wendy Esko, Sarah LaPenta, Avelyn Kushi, Lima Osawa or Noa Otomo. I would not have spent hours making Japanese sweets with my friend Atsuko Nagashima with the youmogi (mugwort) we picked on a mountain hike earlier in the day. I’d have missed the joy of growing food, buying from local farms and cooking fresh. In short, I became a better cook.

As a vegetarian I have been adventurous in going to new neighborhoods to find vegetarian friendly food. For a while, I wrote restaurant reviews for an English language newsletter that catered to the natural foods crowd in Tokyo. I never would have been asked to do this had my journey not begun.

I traded lamb chops for chick peas, a trade I have never regretted.

Today I had Chick Pea Salad, one of my favorite recipes from Madhur Jaffrey’s World of the East Vegetarian Cooking to celebrate 30 years of good, vegetarian eating.

Setsubun

On Friday night I enjoyed throwing beans out the door. Yes. I did. I have looked forward to Setsubun this year with particular relish. 


Setsubun is a Japanese observance that I truly enjoy. February 3rd is said to be the beginning of spring. To prevent bad luck from coming to them, people participate in Setsubun observances. Shrines and temples generally have events in which someone dressed up as an Oni (commonly translated as devil, but a little different from the western concept. Monster works as well) is warded off by throwing beans at him. While throwing the beans people say "Oni wa soto. Fuku wa Uchi" meaning "Devil outside. Fortune come into our home." People born in the years corresponding with the current Chinese zodiac are invited to dress as the oni. (That would be you dragon year people.) Throwing soybeans at them (mamemaki) is thought to drive away bad luck. 

While not everyone partakes in these activities, I enjoy them. This fact makes it all the more surprising that there are years I miss this celebration. At homes, especially those with children, people have their own mamemaki. Sets with masks and soybeans can be found for sale in most department stores in Japan. In my home we take turns being the oni and throwing beans. We have several masks from years past. Luckily, roasted soybeans can be found in the natural food sections of many grocery stores here in New England. 

It's great fun to throw beans at each other. We follow the tradition of saving out some beans to eat. Each person eats the number of soybeans as their age. You can see one person here had to eat far more than the other.

Perhaps one of the reasons I love Setsubun is that it is simple. It doesn't require large amounts of preparation. Yet I find myself refreshed and ready for a new season. Setsubun's focus on banishing the bad speaks to me deeply this year. 


New Year's, Chinese New Year and Setsubun - three chances to feel a fresh start this year.