Mom's Home, Moving Blogs!

After a grueling six weeks of treatment, my mom is back home! No more running back and forth to Duluth. While the hard part might be over, that doesn't mean things are easy. She's still really sick, though she should start to recover soon. Cancer is horrible, but the treatment for it is just as bad. I've been going to the house every day to do some chores so she has less to worry about. Cleaning that place is a never ending battle, but if I don't do it, it won't get done. 

My own personal to-do list is still a mile long, but I'm making progress. It's my goal to get my snake website up *tonight.* Then the rest of the week I'll be working on the dragon costume. I have to do some major surgery to the mask to get the jaw in alignment before I can continue on the head. 

As I mentioned in my last journal post, I will be writing my book as part of NaNoWriMo in November. Technically I'm a "rebel" because it's a memoir, not a novel, but it still counts. September is dedicated to finishing this dragon, and October will be dedicated to past 2D art commissions. Plan in place!

On a final note, I've decided it's time to leave this blog behind and transfer over to my new website - Aurora's Woods. It will be better organized with categories, and I'm excited to take things in a more professional direction. :)

Thanks for reading!

Life - It's Happening! (photos)

I'm living in a blurry world, folks. When I'm not busy I'm busy, and with so much going on it has been difficult to keep on top of certain things - mostly my dishes, laundry, grocery shopping, art, and this blog. I've literally had "write a schedule" on my to-do list for about a month. I started it tonight. "Update blog" has been on it for a while, too, so here I am. Time to start crossing things off. :)

I still love my job, and I'm sliding into a pretty good rhythm there. I've learned I'm far better at multitasking than I ever gave myself credit for, but there are a few things I still need to get better at, like keeping track of who's gone where and when they'll be back. I really like having a variety of things to do because it means there's always work to be done. I totally understand why Jordan was so annoyed by all the down time he had at his last job. For me there's always a project on deck!

My mom has one more week left of radiation and chemo, and maybe a couple single appointments before getting a break from it all for a while. There has been a lot of running back and forth to Duluth by myself, my dad, my sister, and friends. I think the time away has been really good for my mom. It forced her to get out there and be social, and she's made some new friends through it. She's also doing far better than the doctors originally predicted. They said after the first two weeks she "won't feel like shopping anymore," but here it is the end of week five and we went to Shopko and ate at BlackWoods before driving home up the shore. She's amazing.

The woods is my gym, and I've been hiking and enjoying the great outdoors when I can. Still working on fixing my diet and adding more exercise into my day. Health has to be a priority, though I banged up my knee pretty badly on a rock while swimming and I probably needed stitches, but it was Sunday and I didn't want to go to the ER. So far it doesn't seem to be infected but I'm keeping an eye on it. Don't be stupid in the woods, kids. You might have to drive home with a sock tied around your knee with string from your hooded sweatshirt (which reminds me, I really need to get a little first aid kit for the car - smart idea, Kristi!).

I've been working on getting a website for my snakes up and running. I've got a little more content to write and then it'll be good to go. I want to get that done ASAP so I can get a few more snakes sold before winter makes shipping more difficult. Selling locally is my last resort.

Next project on the list is a dragon costume. I'm excited to bring this character to life! I was going to try to get it done by the end of the month, but it will probably take me a couple weeks. 

I'm going to do the NaNoWriMo challenge this year and get my book written during the month of November. Each day I will have a certain number of pages that have to be done, and I will do them. With any luck I'll have it all edited and ready by January and then I can get back to the art side of things. One creative focus at a time is how these things are going to get done!

Thanks for reading! 

Another brief hiatus...

I'm dealing with a lot of things going on in my personal life right now. I'll be back with new content and updates soon. For now I have to concentrate on my job and my family. Thank you all for reading!

Do I miss California? Only a little bit...

In my notes for the book I'm writing I have a list of all the pros and cons I've experienced living in SoCal as well as up here in Minnesota. Over the next few days I'm going to share some of them here.

Many people move to California in pursuit of big dreams and end up staying long after their initial enthusiasm dies, simply because it's incredibly difficult to leave. You become complacent and adapt, and the rest of the world starts to feel like another planet entirely. SoCal is it's own little world - a dirty rat race where people pretend they're important but are actually hollow inside, just going through the motions. Beautiful zombies walk the streets in high heels and tailored suits, while the mentally ill sleep on park benches and hold signs hoping for handouts. Ignorance is bliss.

California is a huge state, and my experiences involve such a small part of the big picture. I never spent a night on a gritty south L.A. street where crime is common and store windows have steel bars. I never spent a night in an extravagant penthouse overlooking the ocean, either. I lived somewhere in the middle, but I made many observations.

I've lived in California for four years, total. Two were spent in a big house in the hills of Encino, and two were spent in a small apartment in downtown Burbank, with a few years back home in Minnesota separating them. Each California experience was very different, but I'm grateful for them both. 

The list of things I miss about Southern California is pretty short, but there were definitely perks. 

1. The food is incredible. You can find flavors from around the world on the street outside our front door, and the produce selection is beyond anything I've seen elsewhere thanks to the long (non-stop?) growing season. Looking back I wish I had planted more food plants on our balcony.

2. A distinct lack of flying, biting bugs. In the winter a few mosquitoes might sneak in, but they're few and far between. 

3. Museums and educational places. Griffith Observatory, the Getty, the La Brea Tar Pits, the Natural History Museum - so many interesting things to see!

4. Very cool national parks, namely Joshua Tree and Sequoia/Kings's Canyon, and all the different wildlife. 

5. Our apartment's balcony. While living in the city sucked in many ways, our balcony was my happy place. I could sit outside and watch birds fly around the trees or watch people walking on the sidewalk. Some of my favorite times were spent hanging out on the balcony with Jordan, just chatting and enjoying each other's company.

I think that pretty much sums it up. I don't think California is terrible, but it pales in comparison to the north woods. More coming soon!

Live to Fish, Fish to Live

Life is stressful.

There are a huge number of ways to relieve stress. Doctors recommend exercise, yoga, meditation, and even masturbation. Stress relief is important for our overall health. You have to find your happy place.

My happy place involves holding a stiff rod in my hand and waiting for a little action. 

I love innuendo.

It was my dad who taught me how to fish and ignited this lifelong passion. He took me fishing a lot growing up. We used to have a nice boat with a live well and I have many fond memories of trolling and still fishing on Devil Track, Trout, Cascade, Flour and Two Island lakes. I never wanted to leave the lake even as it was getting dark. I always thought there might be one more fish lurking around the bend. Maybe if I moved my rod a certain way, I could entice a big one to grab my lure. 

Catching fish is only part of it, though. I don't have to catch anything to enjoy fishing. The act of casting, patiently waiting, reeling, and casting again has a rhythm, a heartbeat. I feel a primal connection to nature similar to the one I feel while hunting. At the heart of it, fishing is hunting. My goal is to catch fish and put a meal on the table, but going hours without a nibble is certainly not a waste of time. There is much to enjoy and appreciate.

This entry was inspired by tonight's fishing trip. I left home around 6:30 and headed to Cascade River hoping to catch a few nice brook trout. If you've never had brook trout, you're missing out on what might be the most delicious fish there is (walleye is a close second).

The river was beautiful, as always.

I wore my Vibram Five-Fingers (toe shoes) because they work great in the water. I waded into the river and was surprised at how warm it was in some places and cooler in others. I put a worm on a basic bait-holder hook and started fishing. If I stood still, minnows would nibble at my legs and shoes. I tossed them a worm from the container in my pocket and watched them swarm and attack it like tiny, adorable piranhas. 

I caught two big chubs that I threw back, but no tasty brook trout. After losing worm after worm to the hungry fish and getting annoyed by the deer flies buzzing around my head, I decided it was time to move on to my next destination just down the road - Devil Track Lake. 

As I waded back to shore I looked around the rocks and weeds for my old friend - a mink frog I see literally every time I fish here. Sure enough, there he was!

Okay, so it's probably not the same frog every time. Still, it's always fun to see them there. Mink frogs are so named because they give off an odor when rubbed that apparently smells like mink. I've never actually rubbed or smelled one. 

I changed out of my wet toe shoes and into my sneakers and drove to Devil Track. There's an old seaplane dock at the public boat landing that juts out into the lake and it's the perfect spot to night fish. The sun was already behind the trees so I got my camp chair set up quickly and slapped a leech on a beaver flick (that's a fishing lure) and tossed my bobber into the lake. Only a minute passed before I had a bite. After a good fight, I pulled in a big smallmouth bass around the same size as one I caught in the same place a few nights ago. I was hoping for walleyes, but a big smallmouth has enough meat on it to be worth filleting. I put it on my grandpa's old stringer and tied it to the dock. I caught a second one not long after. 

Several people brought their boats in from the lake and a small party joined me in my shore fishing pursuits, though they left empty handed. I watched a beaver swim by and listened to a loon calling from across the lake. I can understand why early settlers thought they were hearing ghosts when they first heard the loons. 

My lighted bobber's light went kaput, and as the stars started twinkling into view I could no longer see it. It was time to head home.

I didn't see any other notable wildlife on this trip, but the other day when I made the drive down the Devil Track Lake Road I saw a young snowshoe hare, a red fox, and a whitetail deer. 

Fishing is so much more than fishing. It's living. 

The good, the bad, and the plan

The good:

- Grand Marais is wonderful and it feels so good to be back.
- My new job is going well and I enjoy it.
- I'm finally starting to feel creative again after a long slump.
- Fishing! Hiking! Nature! Friends!
- I'm exercising more and feeling good.
- My mom is keeping a positive attitude, despite all that's going on.

The bad:

- Mom is away M-F in Duluth for radiation and chemo treatments. She may get very, very sick.
- Jordan was recently diagnosed with diabetes and hypertension.
- Jordan is still stuck in California and fighting the system to get health insurance and pay rent after being laid off. 

The plan:

- Help my folks with cooking and general housekeeping while Mom is in Duluth.
- Be there for Jordan, help as much as I can from afar.
- Sell things, work hard, make money.
- Start creating things again; most importantly this blog, my book, and my commission backlog.
- Get healthy.
- Enjoy summer in northern Minnesota as much as possible!

Writing every day

I've been busy in a way I haven't known since I moved to California, but it feels good. It's especially nice to have a job that has a specific start and end time. Now I just need to focus on my other priorities, like writing this book and doing a lot of art. As part of that effort, I'm going to be writing a blog post every day from here on out with life updates and whatever else I feel like writing about. It's exercise for my brain, and my fingers.

For now I will be updating this blog, but I will soon be moving to my new website http://www.auroraswoods.com and blogging there. I'm going to get it updated this weekend and get some new content written for a separate website just for my boa constrictor hobby.

More general updates to come over the next few days. Time to make up for this month of silence! Lots going on, lots to do, lots to write about. :)

Hiatus!

Hey folks!

I'm disappearing while I make this mini move happen. Lots to pack, lots to do. My big Sequoia and King's Canyon post will have to wait until I have time to do it justice. The next update will hail from Minnesota. Thanks for your support!

Back to the north woods!

The Adventure Continues!

So much is happening right now that it's difficult to keep everything straight. My world is a blur, emotions are running high, and I have no idea what the future is going to bring (and that's scary). I'm reminding myself to take things one day at a time, one thing at a time, and everything will get taken care of. Big things are happening, both good and bad!

First, the good.

Last weekend Jordan and I camped high up in the Sierra mountains in King's Canyon National Park, where he proposed!

I said yes!

Our hands are resting on the soft bark of a giant sequoia tree in one of the most beautiful places we've ever been to. I'm working on a big blog post detailing the trip and should have that up this weekend, but my first priority is getting my last week of writing work complete. Then I have a lot of packing to do. I will be shipping my snakes on Monday and flying back to Grand Marais on Tuesday! So much to do!

Now, the bad.

Last week Jordan was laid off from work. Today he found out exactly what our options are concerning our apartment. It would cost roughly $5,000 to break the lease right now, even though his unemployment alone isn't enough to live on until February when our lease is up (our original moving date). Thanks to a severance and my own savings we're okay right now, but it's going to get difficult quickly. We're trying to find someone to sublease, but the rent is high and the apartment isn't in the greatest shape. The complex would likely replace the carpet, repaint the walls and shower, and replace the toilet before renting it. We're not counting on this option, which means Jordan will likely have to stay in CA until February.

The other options suck, though. Jordan could get a full time job and quit in 6 months to move to MN (which is both rude to the company and looks horrible on a resume), or he could get a part time job that has 75% of the wages removed as part of the unemployment terms. The situation sucks all around and we're not quite sure what direction to turn from here.

I know we can get through this, and we'll be stronger for it when we look back on it later.

Still, this move is proving to be more difficult in ways I never saw coming. That's life, eh?

One Creative Thing at a Time

When I first attempted to do art as primary income, I failed. The second time I attempted to do art as primary income, I failed. Third time's a charm, right? It will be a while before I attempt again.

It took failing twice to show me how much I need to learn about the wide world of business. I basically tried to start a business without any business background or knowledge whatsoever. I was doomed to failure before I picked up my pencil and sketched my first commission.

I have a sizable backlog of owed artwork to complete, both from the Indiegogo campaign and previous work I've taken on since living in California (and promised gifts from long ago...). The art I owe ranges from simple digital sketches to complex real media paintings, as well as a couple animal costumes. I cannot take on new art commissions until I no longer have any art in my queue. I'm changing my focus and I have a ton of great personal projects I hope to pursue, but that can't happen until everything owed has been delivered.

I'm slowly learning how to run and manage a business, and I have my writing job to thank for that. Many of the blogs I write for are directed toward business professionals and I come across a lot of tips about marketing, selling, and building a brand. I've also been observing successful entrepreneurs doing the things I'd like to be doing someday, and figuring out what they've been doing that I haven't. It's been an eye-opening experience and I've learned a lot, and I'm sure I still have much to learn.

I've realized that my biggest downfall has been my tendency to take on too much and involve myself in multiple creative projects at the same time without a clear plan. The only way I can get through my backlog and continue doing art in the future is if I tackle one type of creative endeavor at a time, from start to finish, before moving on to the next. This has never been more clear to me.

Unfortunately, writing is a particular "creative project" and I've found that since I started this wonderful job that pays my bills, my ability to do art of any kind has nearly vanished. It's incredibly frustrating. I have mixed feelings about leaving this writing job in California when I move at the end of the month, but I'm looking forward to having a "normal" job that I actually leave the house for. It will help to have a set beginning and end to my work day, which is something I struggle to make for myself.

I was planning on having my entire art backlog (minus Indiegogo stuff) finished before moving, but it simply hasn't been possible. I haven't finished a drawing since January. I need a solid plan. I have to pick a creative focus and complete everything in that focus before moving to the next. I know this is the key to speeding up my progress.

Rather than continue beating my head against the wall over the next two weeks wondering why I can't get art done, I'm putting it on hold. Right now I need to focus on getting my writing done for work, getting my book started, and selling things before the move. These things must be done, and I thank my patrons for their continued patience.

After the move I will prioritize costumes, then old commissions, then Indiegogo work. One thing at a time. It will all be done in time.