Anniversary

So it's been about a year since I've started this blog and in the past months I have been admittedly inattentive... well lazy. But in any case I am back.

I finally landed a job teaching art and am excited to explore the possibilities at my school. We're a small independent school in Hoboken, NJ. I really like Hoboken because it reminds me so much of Baltimore. There are brownstones and artsy shops and street fairs and it's right near the water. The best part is though, that it's a 15minute ride on the Path Train to get into NYC. I definitely won't complain about that. I would love to move there but a. it's way too expensive and b. I am committed to living in Piermont until we're ready to buy a house, hopefully by age 30.

The floral business is going well too. I ended up booking all three weddings for May, one for July, one for August and four so far for next year! I want this business to grow so much... but there's only so much time to dedicate between life and lesson planning.

We went to the MoMA last week and it was so inspirational, as usual, but I still find myself stuck in a funk of not making art outside of classroom prototypes. I figure if I keep convincing myself that I will make art again then it will happen in its own time. For now though I will be the weirdo who is so excited about getting a new washer delivered and making dinner at home. Send the creative mojo anyway though. Cheers.

ten again.

Send out the appreciation.

1. An exciting new haircut
2. Getting a 25% tip
3. Winning solataire (finally)
4. Movies from the 80s
5. Home grown veggies
6. The hum of my sewing machine
7. Printmaking Ink
8. Postcards
9. When a student says a sweet thing and means it
10. The chirpy sounds my kitten makes

art-ing and banking on it.

I painted for the first time in about five years. I put my hands into the paint and it exhilarating. The product may not be my best work but it's a start.

I am feeling a new and revived motivation. Making artwork, gearing up for my own summer camp!!! There is a paint your own pottery studio near by called 'Glaze'. The first day they opened I dropped off my resume and it's only been good things since then. They called just a few weeks later and asked me about creating a camp. Bonus is that they wanted it to be an art history-based thing so I get to create art problems as opposed to just projects. It's so nice to be able to start from scratch and put my stamp on everything. The ladies who run it are such wonderful people! I know it's going to be great.

Also I have quite possibly booked three weddings for May! Two in New York and one in Maryland (conveniently on Mother's day weekend). The bride's are all really sweet and easy going for the most part. Always a relief. Besides May being a really great month for flowers. This kind of jump in business can only mean good things, especially in THIS economy.

Luckily other things are going well too. The restaurant is slow but I never leave empty handed. It's also really nice to have some spending money finally. The people are pretty cool too although I always get uncomfortable when I'm the new kid in town. I just do my best and hope for the best. I've already made good with the bus boys so I get extra help whenever I need it and hopefully they will teach me some Spanish too! I really want to learn another language, especially since there are so many ESL kids in the schools now. I actually have four Japanese students, two of which speak zero English. What do I do with that?

Speaking of school.. I am the technology teacher until April. The real tech teacher is out with unexpected surgery and I am there in his stead. It's really nice to have a classroom and teach a subject that's close to art. Hopefully it will only lead to the real ticket.

Hope.hope.hope. That's what I am banking on.

inward-re-direct

1. Realizations. Realizing things that you already knew.
2. Truth.
3. The smell of summer.
4. Balancing the cynicism with the romanticism.
5. Cheese.
6. Typewriters.
7. Watercolors with no purpose.
8. When my cat lays on my chest.
9. Work ethic.
10. My mom's voice.

Resolve

So it's the new year and I'm finally re-posting. I usually make a new year's resolution, but I have been having a hard time with it. Of course I am resolving to finally finding a full time art teaching position, but that has been on-going since graduation 2007... I have really been wanting to make art, however it's been frustrating and not very fruitful. My present-making went well and all gifts were a great success, which absolutely motivated me to get going, but... So I need to get the juices flowing. I guess my resolution will be to go to more gallery shows and museums. Being in the presence of art is always inspiring and motivating!

Back in my own little DIY world I am going to make a headboard for me and manfriend. Most likely it will be simple, dark brown fabric stretched over foam and a long rectangle of wood, but I did get a silkscreen for christmas so maybe that will come into play.

I just took up a second job as well, which is going to cut into my creative time, but now I will actually have funds to work on my projects. Waiting tables may not be the most fun, but hopefully it will lead me back to bartending for the summer! I really miss it and it's kind of satisfying to walk home with cash. Not to mention it's social and I could use the extra interaction.

Short post but at least putting it out there should motivate. 'Should' being the active word.

Home series

So I have decided to start a series that I have been thinking about for quite some time now... Even though I have lived my entire life up until only this past June in Baltimore, I have still lived many places. Since I graduated high school alone I have moved seven times. I want to use this work to explore the ideas of home, shelter, etc. This picture isn't great but at least it's a start. A tiny (appx. 6"x 5") mixed media collage.

I also want to include some humorous aspects to this series... considering I have lived in some laughable situations. For example.. my freshman roommate the Undergarmentstealer (U.G.S) as my sister named her. Maybe I will even include my childhood living spaces like me and my sister sharing a full size bed as kids in a Baltimore row house. I am excited to further investigate ideas and am in the process of sketching and scavenging for materials.






On another note I am starting my Christmas preparations! I have decided to either hand-make or buy hand-made items... for all the obvious reasons (supporting other artists, using my skills and the eco-freaking-nomic crisis) Some of which include terrariums (pictured right but not EXACTLY what they will look like), a memo board for my buddy Lorraine, a shadow box of my grndmother for my mom, an Andy Warhol style print of my Grandmom for my sister, a special t-shirt for one of the other band girlfriends, an apron, and so much more! I may even make a black velvet painting of Neil Diamond for my manfriend ;) All of these things!!!! This past year has been really tough not making 'real' money yet, but to hell with that, at least I can have fun with it!

On a final note, I am still buying a few things and I got my littlest sister Brittaney, she's 11 believe it or not, a book on "Listography"... you basically fill in different pages with lists based on your life. I thought it would be a nice thing to do with your friends and look back on when you're older. So here is one of my lists:


Ten Random Things I love:

1. Freshly sharpened pencils
2. My cat's snores
3. Cherry Coke..mmm
4. A brand new hardcover book and the way it crackles when it's opened
5. The sensation that Nothing needs to be done in that moment
6. The smell of tea brewing, especially herbal
7. Hand carved wood
8. Putting your hands into a bucket of slip
9. Finding a particularly hilarious mustache
10. Typewriters

that's all for now.

Mourning, Morning

On Sunday October 5, 2008 my grandmother, passed away. I never wanted to imagine my grandmother leaving this earth, but after the past months I am thankful that she is finally at peace. For the past couple of years I have watched Alzheimer's slowly deteriorate her memory and delicate frame until she slipped from this world. I could just imagine her standing at the edge of her nursing home bed saying 'don't cry for me' or 'damnit, why are you all going on and on like this'. She was always such a strong, sassy and incredibly kind lady... I will never stop missing her. Almost all of my friends from Maryland came to her viewing and I was so thankful to have them there for me, to give me strength and remind me to celebrate and appreciate the beautiful life that I am surrounded by. Even those that could not be there sent my messages in other ways to show me I was in their thoughts. My best buddies even took me out for rotating sushi and listened to me blabber on and on for hours. I love them so much! Even though I live far away now, I almost feel like the three of us are closer than ever.

I wrote a brief eulogy for her funeral which I somehow managed to get through, I think she would have approved:

All the things I would want to say about my grandmother I don't think I could ever quite put into words, she meant so much to me just as I know she did to all of you. Now that I am an adult I realize that so much of what I have become is from emulating the things she loved; good food, a good bargain, art, children and especially socializing. I want to carry on in my life her passion, her warm heart and her sharp tongue, always ready to say exactly what she was thinking. I hope that all of you take that part of her you loved the most and carry that on in your own life, that way Theresa Longo will live on this earth and in our hearts forever.

So I spent a good bit of the week feeling sad, Greg made me grilled cheese and cuddled me and let me sob all over him. He even did extra stuff around the house and saved me some really cool shows that he thought I would like while I was away. How good can it get? I worked on Monday and Tuesday, but miserably... I am already frustrated with this job and I was subbing for physics on top of all the emotional aspects. The way I acted in those two days I am admittedly a bit embarrassed about. After the first day of not wanting to deal with anything I decided that since the students were left the same problems for both days that I would let them go to the cafeteria or the library if they were finished. I didn't even check their work and the second class I knew could not have gotten anything done because most of them were being so obnoxious the day before. During that class period my boss, the very sweet and accommodating vice-principal, came in and asked me if I had dismissed the class.. akkk! I was so afraid and knew that I really shouldn't have let most of the class go. I felt like I let her down and myself down as an educator. Not that I could teach physics, but that I needed to keep those kids there and working, focused. It's just so frustrating to me as a degreed professional to basically babysit these classes.

I am just trying to create teachable moments whenever I can and knowing that I will find a fantastic job where my students and I can grow and flourish. Even though this job is so easy and gives me loads of free time I miss the challenges of teaching art and the personal connections with my students.

I am going to keep working hard and staying tough, just like my dear grandmama would have wanted. Maybe next time I will finally make a less emotional post.