Art & Advocacy

I wanted to share with you that last week I received the Canadian MS Society's Spring/Summer magazine in the mail. As I was flipping through it, I came across me! Back in February, they invited me, as someone living with NMO to join their Flee or Fight national campaign. I was honoured to be a part of it and submitted this photo. I knew it was going to be used-I just didn't know where, when or how. It's really exciting that it was included in the magazine which was sent out to homes across Canada! What a great way to raise awareness!

I also finally was able to gt my hands on a copy of Dawn DeVries Sokol's new book. It's a chunky monkey, loaded with beautiful art journal pages. If you don't own this one, it really is a must have.

I am please to share that my artwork is on page 33.  Both of these pieces of work mean so much to me-the man on the left was my Gramps' maternal grandfather (my great, great grandfather) old man Reimer and the family in the photo on the left is my Gram's family-my great grandparents (I was named (my middle name) for my Great Grandpa Nowell, who died a month before I was born) and my Grams' siblings. (M great aunts and uncles.) My Gram is the tall one at the back. It's a really lovely way to remember them. My friends Seth Apter and Penelope Harris also have work in this book.

I am currently working on finishing up my latest zine and watching my post box for all the zines being submitted to the exchange I am hosting. So far three have arrived and they are amazing. I am looking forward to packaging them all up and sending them off to everyone. I know they are going to love them! I have included the art work that's in Dawn's book in my zine. I couldn't resist!

I also participated in the MS Society BC-Yukon Division's art show. These are the pieces I submitted. It was a great way to help raise awareness for NMO. At one point, as I was taking this photo, two women walked up and one pointed out to the other, the long lesion on my spinal cord shown in the middle piece. (Which, by the way was published in Seth Apter's The Pulse Of Mixed Media.) I leaned over and said "Yeah and that's an NMO lesion, not and MS lesion." They then introduced themselves as scientific researchers at UBC. They were quite excited to see an MRI image used in this way.

It's been a busy time settling into our new home and neighbourhood. I've been busy feathering our new nest. The days just seem to fly by.

Good Mail Day!

Look what finally arrived in the mail!! I love good mail days!

Here's a peek at my page & interview questions. My friends Seth Apter & Penelope Harris are also on this book, but aside from those two, all the other artists are new to me, which will make for an interesting read. Art Journal Kickstarter is full of eyecandy and interesting commentary on each of the artists' creative process and it's sure to inspire anyone who loves art journaling. Want a copy for yourself? You can find it here.

Seeing my art between the cover just never gets old. It's a thrill every time! 

5X5 Small Works Exhibition

So some time ago, in 2012, I submitted a piece for my friend Seth Apter's 5X5 project, which followed the publication of his first book, The Pulse of Mixed Media. 75 artists contributed work to the project in a variety of mediums.

All of the art for Seth's 5x5 project is currently on exhibit in Putnam, Connecticut at The Empty Spaces Project. Seth has posted about it in more detail here. The Empty Space Project has a blurb about the exhibit on their website, which is here. I also wanted to share that all of the art is available for purchase. To view the pieces and to purchase, click here.

In the late fall of 2012, Seth's 5x5 project was featured in the November/December issue of Somerset Studios.

My piece was part of that feature. 

Here's a closer look at the 5x5 zine I made:

This piece is also available for purchase. If you're looking for it on Seth's post, it's about 3/4 of the way down.

Congratulations Seth on this wonderful exhibit! 

Here's a peek:

(Photo Credit: Seth Apter)

Pretty darn cool!

Catching Up!

Creating: 

I am currently working on my December designs for Paper Artsy. In case you missed the first 9, you can find them here. What am I making? Well you'll just have to wait and see!

Reading: 

I've been on a book-buying binge in the last month.

 Right now I am reading Make it Mighty Ugly by Kim Werker. 

In the queue are: 

The Unlikely Pilgramage of Harold Fry by Rachael Joyce

I wanted to read this one because it's about a man who goes out to mail a letter to a dying friend but then decides to deliver the message in person. He begins walking 600 miles. 

Inferno by Dan Brown

I love Dan Brown! I own everything he's written and this is the next instalment of his Robert Langdon series. Can't wait to dive in!

Granny Chic by Rachell Blondel & Tif Fussell 

The Granny Chic book was bought solely as eyecandy. I couldn't resist when I saw it was only $12.95. I love it because it's sort of zine-like. 

Syllabus: Notes from an Accidental Professor by Lynda Barry

The Lynda Barry book is just *SO* delicious and I spent 3 weeks rabidly trying to track down a copy. (My friend Penn actually helped me find one in the end-all hail the mighty Pulp Fiction! Gotta love independent book stores for their fantastic customer service!) If you want to know why I wanted this book so badly, this blog has a good peek inside. Am I right or am I right? I love her books! I also own What It Is and Picture This: Nearsighted Monkey .

Watching:

So I am late to the party, but I am currently binge watching 8 seasons worth of Big Bang Theory. I'm almost through season 5. It's hilarious! I noticed that a piece of of Anahata Katkin's work hangs in one of the apartments!

I have also been watching season 5 of Downton Abbey. The writing, acting and costuming of this series is impeccable. 

Then there are my usual shows-Ice Pilots NWT (Which sadly is in its last season! *weeps*), Alaska the Last Frontier, Mountain Men, Life Below Zero, Ice Road Truckers, (Are you sensing a theme here?) The Amazing Race, Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown, Grey's Anatomy and a new show called Stalker.

Geez, when I list them out like that, it looks like alot, but I really spend very little time watching TV. I read more than I watch.

Listening:
Heart's on Fire ~Passenger
Broken Arrow ~Robbie Robertson
'Till the World Ends ~Andy Brown
The Scientist ~Willie Nelson

The Scientist was the final song from the movie The Judge with Robert Duvall and Robert Downey Junior. It was THE best movie I've seen in a long, long time. If you haven't seen it, GO! When it comes out on DVD, I am going to buy it. It was that good. I will be surprised if it doesn't win some awards. It was a beautiful piece of work.

Anticipating:
I received an email yesterday afternoon saying that a new book that my art will appear in is going to be released in short order! Yay! Two of my friends, Seth Apter and Penelope Harris are also being published in this book, but other than that, all the other artists are new to me. I can't wait to flip through it!

Here's a sneak peek of the cover:

If you're interested in adding this to your collection, you can pre-order here.

I am also looking forward to going to the Little River Band concert this weekend. My husband bought tickets for our 24th Anniversary which was just last week. It's his favourite band and has been the soundtrack of many a road trip together.

Dreaming:

I have some other exciting news, but I am just waiting for the okay to share it. It's pretty cool!!

Coming Soon To A Shelf Near You!

I am really excited to share with you that Dawn DeVries Sokol's new book A World of Artist Journal Pages is now available for pre-order on Amazon! The release date is April 7th, 2015. I am very humbled to have work appearing in this book which is filled with delicious eye candy from over 1000 artists from 30 countries. If you're into art journalling, then this book is going to be a must have!

Congratulations Dawn on all your hard work!

10 Years Come & Gone!

Creating:

Right now I am working on a top secret project, which I will be able to share with you come the fall. It's a good one!

I whipped up some more envies over the long weekend using pages from old Stampington publications and I posted them to Instagram. Stampington saw them and invited me to submit them for publication. I'd better get on that! It's been awhile since I've written an article for them or submitted art. No time like the present!

Speaking of publishing, Vancouverite author, artist & instructor Leanne Praine's new book Strange Material: Storytelling Through Textiles is due out in October. I just saw the cover and I'm excited to get my hands on a copy-it looks yummy! I am so pleased to have a small written piece included in this book.

Watching:

My friend Deb and I were chatting last week and she asked me to check out this new HBO show called The Leftovers. It's a really odd show, edgy as most HBO shows tend to be, but strangely compelling. It's hard to describe-it takes place after a post apocalyptic type event happens and the people left behind (the leftovers-hence the name) struggle to make sense of it. I would recommend checking out the official website and watching the trailer first because I don't think it's for everybody. It's pretty hardcore and graphic in places. (Typical of HBO series.) That said, I am enjoying it because you really don't know where it's going and I love all the twists and turns.

Oh and here are a couple screen captures from the show I was in. One from my one-on-one interview clip. (I am speaking so that's why my mouth looks funny.) 

The other is a shot with me with the cast in Ft. Langley. We did a ton of location shoots over 5 days.

I am also pleased to share that I will be doing some more filming for the UBC Faculty of Medicine's new program, which I have been consulting on. It's for medical professionals already in practice to learn about patient-centred and collaborative care. I did some filming for these courses back in January and I'll be filming as a presenter for the module they are working on now. 

It's really rewarding to know that this will have a direct impact on the future of health care in our province. I love advocacy work-it feels good to be making a difference and I learn so much about myself and from others in doing it. I'm also going to be doing some interviews for the Health Mentors Program over the next couple of weeks.

Listening:

I recently downloaded James Taylor's version of The Water is Wide. It's a favourite of mine for sentimental reasons and his cover is beautiful.  I love James Taylor.

I also saw the movie Begin Again with Keira Knightly. If you saw Once, you will enjoy this one. I downloaded A Step You Can't Take Back from the Soundtrack. It's my favourite track from the movie.

And lastly, before I sign off for now, it seems only fitting to note that as of August 1st, this humble blog turned

10 Years Old!

Hard to believe it's been that long or that when I began, most artists didn't even have a blog. So for those of you who've been along for the ride, whether in part or for the whole 10 years, thank you for your company, your comments and your friendship! Here's to keeping the home fires burning for another 10!

Perspective on Publishing

So I wanted to share with you something that happened today.

This morning, I woke up to an email saying that a piece of my art that I'd submitted for publication in a book had been accepted. The funny thing was that initially, it wasn't. When the announcement was made awhile back, my name was not on the list. 

Was I disappointed? Not really. I figured that there was a reason, even if I didn't know what it was and I was okay with that. It just wasn't my turn. At the time, I just shrugged my shoulders, was happy for friends whose work was chosen and then forgot about it.

This morning, two months later, the publisher sent me an emailing explaining that they had decided to expand the book to include more artists and they very much wanted to include my work. Sweet! 

So why I wanted to share this with you is that I am sure there are those of you out there who might have submitted work to a book, magazine or project and were not chosen. I want to tell you don't give up. It doesn't mean your work isn't good enough or that you're not an artist or any of the million other (negative) things you might be thinking about why it didn't work out.

Sometimes, there are just so many submissions, it's hard to include them all. Sometimes, it's because the art wasn't the right fit for a particular project.

Sometimes, it's someone else's turn.

I'm not saying it's not challenging putting yourself and your work out there-everyone struggles with that because it's a big deal to make yourself vulnerable. But here the thing: if you believe in the art you are making and if it feeds your soul, keep making it and keep submitting it. The art that was just accepted for this book was not chosen for another book. The author of that book chose two other pieces I submitted instead. No big deal! It didn't change how I felt about this piece and it's now found its way into a different book. One door closes and another door opens! 

My intention is always tempered with the though of "this or something better" when I send pieces of myself out into the world. I've learned to trust that things will unfold in exactly the way they are meant to. So far, so good. 

My wish is that with lots of hard work and a little luck, it will be your turn soon- I'm counting on it! 

Good Things!

I have been invited to speak to the BC Chapter of the Canadian Association of Neuroscience Nurses (CANN) at the end of April about my experience with Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO). I am really excited to have the opportunity to share my story with health care provides who are working in the neurosciences field and help raise awareness. I will be speaking for about half an hour and then there will be a Q&A afterwards. I look forward to the conversations that will happen there.

In other news, I also got word that a small piece I wrote about a piece of clothing that has deep sentimental value to me is going to be included in Vancouver Artist & writer, Leanne Prain's new book, Strange Material: Storytelling Through Textiles will be released this autumn by Arsenal Pulp Press.

What's it about? Here's the scoop:

"Strange Material: Storytelling Through Textiles will explore the relationships between handmade textiles and stories. Through the text, the act of weaving a tale or dropping a thread will take on new meaning for those who may have previously only seen textiles as functional objects. The book will encourage storytelling to leap off the page and into the mediums of batik, stitching, dyeing, fabric painting, knitting, crochet or weaving. The artists that will be featured in the book create narratives with a needle, instead of a pen, dye rather than ink, weave i place of paper. Themed chapters will include fiction, poetry, wearable stories, manifestos, memoir, pictorial stories and humour."

I wrote the small piece in response to Leanne's call back in the summer and then promptly forgot all about it! That's the fun of long lead times with books-you submit work months, if not years in advance and by the time you get the news that your work has made the cut, it feels like a surprise out of the blue. I love those kinds of surprises! Leanne said there will be a book launch party in the fall and to expect an invitation. I'm in-it should be lots of fun!

Speaking of surprises out of the blue, I also received a "you're invited" email from the local curling club that I volunteered with for the 2014 BC Wheelchair Curling Championships last month. They are hosting a thank you dinner this Friday for those of us who volunteered to help host the event. It's super nice of them and it will be fun to talk about the incredible Olympic curling that team Canada played!

2013: A Year in Review

Things I celebrated:

-Being awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee medal

-Indy turning 5

-Pete's birthday (Any birthday while you are battling cancer is a big deal.)

-Our 23rd wedding anniversary (Happily every after!)

Things I survived:

-Two NMO relapses. Treatment was pretty rough.

-Indy & Pete being attacked by a Pit bull and both badly injured. We were all traumatized.

-Pete had surgery to repair his injury which meant 3 months of recovery just as he was recovering from having his kidney removed for cancer. The day he went for surgery, the company he'd worked for for 23 years folded. It never rains, but it pours!

-Breaking my wrist for the 4th time, XC skiing. Took me 2 weeks to realize it was actually broken and not just a bad sprain. I spent 8 1/2 months in either a cast or a splint.

- The 1 yr. anniversary of Pete's cancer diagnosis

-In October, I spent 15 days sick in bed.  Caught what I refer to as "the plague" and couldn't shake it because I am on immunosupressants.

-Surgery on my wrist & arm almost 6 weeks ago. This has by far been the hardest thing I've had to go through medically (even worse than chemo) for a number of reasons. It can't heal fast enough.

Things I volunteered for:

-Universal Access-Ability Advisory Committee

-UBC Med Student Interviews

-MS Society's Peer Support Program

-Canadian MS Society someonelikeme.ca blogger/mentor (I wrote 10 posts this year.)

-Skiing is Believing program photographer

-A friend's political campaign

-Volunteered at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Conference

-First ever 5 km walk/run for NMO Guest speaker at opening ceremonies

-Health Mentors Program interviews

-The Terry Fox Run

-Health Mentor Program, 2012-2013 & 2013-2014 cohorts

-UBC Patient Panel guest speaker (NMO)

-UBC NMO Day guest speaker

-Organizing Committee for the BC Provincial Wheelchair Curling Championships

-UBC Faculty of Medicine Health Mentors' Advisory Committee

-Assisted with MS fundraiser at two Billy Talent Concerts

Things I did that were fun and/or cool:

-Shared my story on MV-1 Canada's Life Without Compromise website & e-book

-Filmed for 5 days for a tv show which still has not aired-it keeps getting delayed.

-Was invited as an honoured guest for the Ferry Ballet on Canada Day with False Creek Ferries (Your loss Rick Mercer!)

-Saw Melissa Etheridge in concert at the PNE

-Went to Cranberryfest

-Attended my friend Andrea's thesis defence at UBC. She is now a Doctor of Philosophy!

Things that happened in my artistic life:

-Got addicted to Gelli plate printing thanks to my friend Penn

-Was published in Uppercase Magazine (Subscriber profile)

-Had some work accepted for publication in a book due out in spring 2015

-Attended the Vancouver screening of Indie Kindred with my friend Carol (I think I would have had more fun had I not been 2 days post-op and loaded up on pain killers.)

-Had Skiing is Believing photos published in Ski Cross Country Magazine

-Hit the milestone of receiving my 100th Etsy order!

Things I won:

-A year's subscription to Uppercase Magazine

-Tickets for a horse drawn tour of Stanley Park (Which we did on Pete's birthday in October.)

-Tickets to see Shane Koyczan, spoken word poet at the Vancouver International Jazz Festival.

-A beautiful necklace from the Vintage Pearl & all kinds of paper goodies from Curly Girl. They also sent me $25 gift certificates for both companies, which I have yet to use.

-Tickets to the Knowledge Networks premier of Home. I submitted a self portrait and wrote about it to win.

-Tickets to the BC Sports Hall of Fame

-A Sochi 2014 Olympic pin

-A box of Purdy's Turona chocolates (Which should be in the mail tomorrow!)

-Ipad mini & keyboard-this was a gift from my husband's boss and his wife, but it felt like winning!

My word for the year was FOCUS. Clearly, this was a year where that was important, with so many things going on. One of the things I really wanted to focus on accomplishing this year was to do more public speaking about NMO. I was really happy to have the opportunity to be a guest speaker at three different events and I hope to continue to do this in 2014. 

Speaking of 2014, we've been through alot in the last year and a half and I think I am more than ready to have a really good year. I'm hoping 2014 is a kinder, gentler year. 

Good Things!

I thought I would do a quick catch up before the holidays. I've been scarce around here, not because things aren't happening (they are!) but because typing is quite uncomfortable right now. The incision in the heel of my hand hurts, alot. I am taking some special neuropathic pain medication to try and calm the nerves so my hand doesn't feel like raw meat all the time. (I know that's a rather ugly description, but try living with it-it's the kind of pain that forces you to think about it every second of the day. Not fun.)

Anyway, in the good news department, I have the following to report:

My husband and I attended his company Xmas party. Prior to the party, the boss sent a note home asking that the men submit their wives' wish lists and maybe they would receive something from it. Less than half the guys read the note and did this. When the boss called those that had to come get the gifts for their wives, my husband came back with two boxes for me. As I started ripping the paper off the first one, I realized that it contained an iPad mini. The second box held a wireless keyboard for it. This was the only thing on my list and I had hesitated to let them know-it seemed like just too big an ask. We both got teary over their amazing kindness and generousity. This gift makes a huge difference in my life in terms of accessibility. I can now take notes at meetings-something that was impossible for me to do before. It will make the work I do much, much easier. I am so very grateful.

This week I won a box of turona chocolates from Purdy's, a BC chocolate company. When I was 16 and lived in Barcelona, I tasted turona for the first time and instantly loved it. It's a special chocolate that is sold during the holiday season in Spain. They are shipping it to me, so I am looking forward to a good mail day soon!

I also got an email about the work I submitted for a book, which was accepted a couple months ago. The author told me which pieces are going to be included in the book and I am really pleased with what she chose. The pieces were made using antique photos of my extended family. Yay! The book will be on shelves in the spring of 2015.

In January, I'm going to be doing some filming. I am going to be part of an educational video for a new medical program at UBC. I've been serving on a Health Mentors' advisory committee since September. The program is to help established health care professionals develop and strengthen their skills around patient-centered and collaborative care. I'll be filming my thoughts and experiences on this subject. For the first time I'll be using a teleprompter-I wrote the "script" (my answers to three questions on the subject) and it will be run to remind me what I want to say. This should be interesting, since I usually just speak without a speech or notes when I am presenting. Hopefully everything will go smoothly!

Before I sign off for now, I wanted to share with you a song I downloaded from the Indigo Girl's new Xmas album, called There's Still My Joy. I'd never heard this song before. It's wistful, sad and hopeful all at once. 

Here are the lyrics to give you an idea of what I mean:

I brought my tree down to the shore

The garland and the silver star,

To find my peace and grieve no more

To heal this place inside my heart.

On every branch I laid some bread

And hungry birds filled up the sky.

They rang like bells around my head

They sang my spirit back to life.

One tiny child can change the world.

One shining light can show the way.

Through all my tears, for what I've lost

There's still my joy,

There's still my joy for Christmas day.

The snow comes down on empty sand,

There's tinsel moonlight on the waves.

My soul was lost but here I am

So this must be amazing grace.

One tiny child can change the world.

One shining light can show the way.

Beyond these tears for what I've lost

There's still my joy,

There's still my joy for Christmas day.

There's still my joy for Christmas day.

Go download it from iTunes. I promise you it's beautiful.

I wish each of you a beautiful holiday season, however you choose to celebrate. 

Things Worth Celebrating

Back in March, I went to Whistler with the Para Nordic Cross Country Skiing is Believing program to do some photography. My friend Andrea had asked me to come do some photography for them to provide to their funders. There was also the possibly some of the photos being published in a BC XC ski magazine. I was more than happy to support this amazing program. (Which, if you missed it, I posted about here.) 

I now have copies of the magazine! This is it:

It's distributed BC wide.

Two of my photographs appear with an article that talks about the program. One is at the top with the header (two sit skiers racing) and the other is the second down on the right. (A group of sit skiers practicing what to do if they should tip over.)

Here's my photo credit! I am really chuffed about this because it's the first time my photos have been published outside of artistic publications. I am still not quite comfortable labelling myself as a photographer-I am not technical about it at all. I shoot and edit with what feels right to my artistic eye, but I can't for the life of me tell you what a f-stop is, nor do I care. All I know is that I enjoy shooting and editing and I really loved the opportunity to have this experience.

Speaking of Andrea, last Tuesday, I went out to UBC with my friend Courtney to support Andrea as she defended her thesis, which was her work on AthletesFirst. Andrea did an fantastic job staying cool under pressure. I think the Doctors who were hearing her defence were very impressed with her as well because in the end, she was granted her Doctor of Philosophy degree! We are all *SO* proud of her!

This was the final slide of Andrea's presentation. Recognize anyone? It was sweet of her to include this photo. (I guest blogged for AthletesFirst at one point, which is why I was included in the presentation.) Another lovely thing about attending Andrea's defence was that I finally got to meet Josh Vander Vies and Meyrick Jones. Both great guys-Josh is super smart and Meyrick is really funny.

Soon Andrea will be off to the UK to do some post-doctorate work. Congratulations Dr. Andrea!!

A Gratitude Post

Some days, are very good days. Today was one of those. It started with some words of love from my best friend, who sent me a note just before I walked out the door and into my day this morning. It said "You are a mensch girl!" That's pretty high Yiddish praise. I love her for it. She has a knack of always saying the right thing to me at the right time, in exactly the way I need to hear it. Everyone should have someone in their lives that does that.

I spent the day out at UBC speaking on two patient panels which I was more than happy to do. Any opportunity to speak to medical students about NMO is a good one. When I got there, I bumped into Stacy from the MS Society who had some very kind words for me about my presentation at NMO Day last week. It's very gratifying when you share something you are passionate about and people respond to that in the way you had hoped. It's especially sweet when they are moved to tell you you did a good job. I am so grateful for that. 

When I got home, there was an email telling me that some work I submitted for a book that's coming out in the spring was accepted. I can tell you that publishing never gets old. It's always a thrill to get those emails saying "You're in!" and then later to get a copy of the publication and see your name and your work between the covers. It's an honour and a privilege and it's extremely humbling.

I think though, the very best part of my day was walking in the door and being greeted with so much love and joy by Indy who clearly missed his mum. No greeting beats that of loyal dog-he practically turns himself inside out with happiness to see me and the feeling is 100% mutual. If you want to know what real, unconditional love is, get a dog. It will change you forever.

So yes, today was a good day. I'm going to tuck this one into my heart.

What's Been Going On

Last Saturday night my husband and I went to the PNE (Pacific National Exhibition) which is the big annual fair. They always have a summer concert series and last night, the fabulous Melissa Etheridge was playing. I've loved her for a long, long time and years when my husband and I were first married, we got tickets to see her at the Orpheum. He didn't know who she was, but he was so impressed by her, he fell in love with her too.

The beauty of the concert space at the PNE is that the view is so spectacular. You can see the north shore mountains, as well as several of the big attractions at the fair all lit up. Add to that a world class artist who knows how to throw a party and it's magic.

At one point in the concert, Melissa brought out a gorgeous electric guitar in vintage aqua, the same colour as my studio. I have no idea why, but this made me insanely happy and I sat there with this big stupid grin on my face the whole time she was playing it. I WANTED that guitar. The crazy thing is, I don't play but I seriously wanted that guitar. If I had that aqua guitar, I would learn to play, even with numb hands.

At one point in the evening, she talked about being cancer free for 9 years and not just being a survivor, but a thriver and then she sang "I Run for Life", her breast cancer awareness song. Saturday night she added lyrics to include male cancer survivors too. Listening, I was trying hard not to cry. It's become so personal for me, especially right at this moment when we're almost at the 1 year anniversary of my husband's diagnosis of kidney cancer. My heart's a little tender about that right now. This year has been one of the hardest of our lives on so many levels. It's our deepest hope that at some point we'll be able to say he's 9 years cancer free too.

It was a fabulous concert and it cheered my up greatly. The only downside was the yahoos sitting around us. There were three separate couples who decided to have loud arguments while Melissa was playing. Who does that?!? They were so obnoxious I was having trouble hearing the music. (And if you know anything about Melissa Etheridge, it's that she rocks the h*ll out of her concerts, so that tells you how disruptive they were being.) One couple was actually arguing about how many strings were on the guitar she was playing, if you can believe it. I'd have liked to El Kabong them with it just to shut them up!

I know things have been kind of quiet here lately. I've been struggling with my health again. I've spent alot of time in bed and it feels like my left leg is going to stop working any second now. My immune system just refuses to stand down, so they've upped my immuno supressants again and we'll see how it goes. At this point, I am just tired of the whole thing. Nothing seems to work.

Yesterday I finally met with the hand surgeon about my broken wrist. After a very painful exam which left me dizzy and about to toss my cookies, he did two diagnostic injections of steroids and freezing into the two parts of my wrist that are the problem. Let's just say when a needle hits bone over and over, it's torture. The pain from that is excruciating and it's going to be days till it settles down. In the meantime, am gobbling pain pills and icing it as much as possible. I was extremely grateful my best friend was there to hold my good hand while all this was done and to make sure I got home safely. She was a huge help and comfort to me. 

I see the surgeon again in six weeks and then we decide which of two surgeries is going to happen. One involves removing a bone and the other involves shortening a bone. I'm pretty freaked out about the whole thing, especially the bone shortening prospect. That's got to be painful. Clearly something has to be done and I am hoping it will be taken care of before 2013 is over. This is dragged on for almost 6 month now as it is and I'd really like to have my right hand functional and pain free again.

When I got home from the hospital yesterday, there was a message from my husband saying he'd been injured on the job and he was at the ER. He tripped over a metal bar that the carpenters left sitting on the deck at his job site and fell between some columns, landing on the shoulder on the same side he had his arm surgery on a few months ago. He is okay, thankfully-nothing broken or torn-he's just understandably sore. Yesterday was about all the trauma I could handle in a single day.

On a positive note, I was asked to be a guest speaker at the 2nd annual NMO Information Day. I will be presenting on the Interprofessional Health Mentors Program that I've been involved with. I am so pleased to have this opportunity and look forward to sharing with other NMO patients how our stories matter to the medical community. My friend Nancy will also be presenting on the first ever (anywhere in the world!) NMO walk/run that she organized this past May.

If you are local and are interested in attending NMO Information Day, you can register here. If you're coming, be sure to find me and say hello!

Also in the good news department, my friend Andrea informed me the other day that it looks like two of the photographs I took for the Para XC Ski Program, Skiing is Believing are going to be published in a magazine! It won't be official till we see it in print, (with magazines, things are always subject to change) but we're pretty confident this is going to happen. Andrea's going to make sure I get some copies, so I'll share them with you when I have them in hand. I'm really excited about the prospect of having my photography appear in a sports magazine-that will be a first for me! If you're interested in seeing all the photos from that day, the entire set is here on my Flickr. It was such an amazing day and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Last, but not least, today is A&W's Crusin' For A Cause Annual MS fundraiser. If you're Canadian, please try and stop by any A&W location and purchase a teen burger-$1 from every burger goes to MS. If hamburgers are not your thing, but you still want to help, all locations are happy to receive donations to the Canadian MS Society. You can also use the hashtag #crusinforacause on Twitter on any of your tweets today and $1 for each tweet will also be donated. It's a very simple way to help fund the important research and support programs the MS Society provides to both people living with MS and also those of us rare birds living with NMO. (The CDN MS Society has very generously taken Canadians with NMO under their wing and are offering us the same services as those with MS.)

For The Win!

The latest issue of Uppercase, #18 has arrived! I had completely forgotten that I had a Subscriber profile included in this issue. I was flipping through, saw it on the page and had a moment of "Oh yeah!" Very honoured to have been included in such a great publication. Thanks Janine!

There is so much good stuff in issue 18-a collection of tiny chairs, (I have a wee collection of these myself) ransom note art, (I made one to submit, but sadly, it never made it into the mail-life happens) assemblages and more. Each issue is a delicious dose of eyecandy! If you're not subscribed, you're missing out!

In other news, I won a set of tickets from Stanley Park 125 for a horse drawn tour of Stanley Park! THANK YOU!! I am thrilled! I've lived here for 27 years and never actually done this. When I told my husband, he was excited about sharing that experience with me. I'd like to do it in early autumn when the trees will be turning colour-I can't think of a better way to celebrate the arrival of my favourite season! 

Horses + my beloved park + autumn = MAGIC!

Stanley Park turns 125 on August 24th-25th and I will be volunteering at the weekend-long celebration. There is going to be a variety of concerts and events throughout the park. You can find more information here. There's something for everyone! Hope to see you there!

The Canadian Car Company With Heart

I don't normally promote companies on my blog, unless they have an exceptional art product I use and love, however, I am more than happy to make an exception when it comes to MV-1 Canada.

In April, MV-1 Canada came out with an e-book called Life Without Compromise in which stories of ordinary Canadians living extraordinary lives were featured. I am honoured to be a part of that book. (If you missed it, you can download it for free here. There's also a permanent link on my sidebar.) 

I also wanted to share that I have an article on accessibility on their blog All Access Pass. I'm talking about how accessibility improves quality of life not just for people with disabilities, but for everyone.

If you follow my blog regularly, you would also know that on May 26th, the first ever Canadian NMO 5 km walk/run is happening in my community. What I am so happy to share with you is that the good people on MV-1 Canada have generously stepped up as one of our corporate sponsors! A big THANK YOU to company co-founder Peter Grande, to Lori McKnight, and everyone at MV-1 Canada for their incredible kindness to me and support for those living with NMO. They are truly a car company with heart.

I'd like to invite you to get to know MV-1 & show them some love by following them on Facebook and on Twitter . 

If you'd like to make a donation to the NMO 5 km walk/run, you can do so here. If you'd liked to join us as a sponsor either personally or as a business, there's still time and we would really appreciate the support! Please post a comment and I will get in touch with you!

Life Without Compromise E-book

This morning I had a lovely surprise waiting for me online when I woke up. MV1 Canada let me know that I have been included in their Life Without Compromise e-book!  You can view & download it here. Please feel free to share this e-book with whomever you like! I am very proud to have been included in this great project and to have the opportunity to share my story. 

 I would like to encourage you to take some time to read this publication, as there are some really amazing and inspiring stories of ordinary Canadians living extraordinary lives. I promise you that you will come away feeling uplifted by the resiliency of the human spirit. 

Thank you to MV1 Canada for taking the initiative to create a way to so beautifully illustrate that people can live and more importantly THRIVE with disability. Here's to always living a Life Without Compromise!!

Uppercase Magazine: Something To Love

A couple weeks ago, Meghan, who recently fulfilled a dream to have work published in Uppercase, (Yay Meghan!) was having a giveaway for a year's subscription to the magazine. For those not in the know, this is THE most aesthetically pleasing, design savvy publication for "the creative and curious" and is a Canadian publication! (Which makes me ridiculously happy.)

I am extremely pleased (and grateful) to say I WON!

Issue 16, Knot Now arrived yesterday. In addition to Meghan's great article about overcoming negative self-talk in order to embrace her creativity, there were so many things to love about it. The abecedary is about thread and stitching. There's a photographic tour of The American Can Company, a place, which judging by the pictures, I would love to spend an afternoon. There is also an article about North Woven Broom Company, which was of particular interest to me because I have family that lives on Kootenay Lake and have been to their shop (located in a lovely old barn in Crawford Bay) many, many times. In fact, my step dad trained with the blacksmith across the road from them, years ago. This same blacksmith often crafts ornamental handles for their brooms. The whole area is a mecca for artisans and makers of all kinds.

Uppercase is a magazine you can look at over and over again. I especially love all of the delicious little details and the way it's chock full of eyecandy and brain food from cover to cover. Even the classifieds (one page! this magazine's all about real content!) are presented in a way that is both interesting and classy. Oh and post cards! Did I mention postcards? Well there were TWO tucked between the pages. I am a postcard junkie from way back. 

Thanks to Meghan and Janine Vangool, (publisher, editor & designer of Uppercase) I am all set to have a year's worth of good mail days! 

That is most certainly something to love!

The Final 5X5

Today my work and that of some other very talented artists is being featured in the final 5X5 post on my friend Seth Apter's blog. You can get your dose of eyecandy and read all about it here.

The Pulse Charity Auction

This is my friend Seth Apter, who is one of the kindest, most generous and genuine people I know. 

Seth lives in New York City and while no harm came to him personally during the storm last week, he, (like many of us) has been touched by the stories of devastation and loss Sandy left in its wake, particularly in his hometown. Seth, ever the instigator (and I mean that in the nicest way possible!) has a fantastic plan about how we can help the people of New York City recover. 

Here's what it is, in his own words:

"As I traveled around promoting the book, I obtained as many signatures as I could from all the contributing artists I met along the way, as I knew that one day there were be a special reason to do this. And today is that day. I have decided to auction off a copy of the book, (signed by 30 artists) along with a piece of my art to benefit the victims of Sandy. The charity I have chosen is The Mayor's Fund To Advance New York City. I will be donating 100% of the proceeds and this fund uses 100% of the monies received for direct aid."

This is a beautiful book, made all the more special by merit of having been signed by so many of the artists involved. It took a community coming together to create this book and it will take a community effort now to make a difference for those who so desperately need our help.

Seth has posted all the details of this effort on his blog, which you can find here. In addition to the book, there are also some original artworks that will be included. 

There is the option to make a straight donation of any amount, if you would prefer. Every little bit helps. You can also help by spreading the word if you have a blog, twitter or facebook. Please tell your peeps and ask them to tell their peeps and let's see how much good we can do, because it's the right thing to do.

"There's a destiny that makes us brothers,

none goes his way alone. 

All that we send into the life of others

comes back into our own."

~Edwin Markham


EDIT: So many of the artists involved in the book wanted to help Seth with this auction that they've donated even MORE art to the cause. As a result, Seth now has two bundles he's auctioning off and there will be more added. Please click the link to get all the details and check back often to see which new bundles that are available.

Good Mail Day!

It's here! Stampington's Somerset Studio arrived in the magic mailbox today! I didn't know they were going to send me a complimentary issue. They usually do when you write an article for them, but I forgot they also do it when they publish your work. I am glad they did-I haven't been able to track one down in stores here yet. (Though certainly not for lack of trying!)

So here's my work between the pages. I posted images of my entire 5x5 submission here, if you'd like to see the whole thing. Seth did a great job on the article, all TEN pages of it! It's really nice that Stampington made so much room in this issue to showcase some of the 110 pieces Seth received for this call. Congratulations Seth! Long live The Pulse! Seth is now working on his second book, which is wonderful news. I can't wait to see it!

Also in the November/December issue is a great artist profile by Rice Freeman-Zachery about my friend DJ Pettit. DJ is one of the nicest people you'll ever meet and she crazy talented. She does amazing work combining her beautiful photographs with paint and textiles. I've taken a class with DJ and the techniques she's developed are like nothing I'd ever seen before. It was great reading this article and seeing how her work has grown over the years. She sent me one of her handmade books years ago and I treasure it. It's so uniquely DJ.

In addition the the magazine, the mail also brought my order from Artchix Studio. When I saw these really cool palmistry wood cuts online and had to order some for myself. (I have a thing for hands!)

Helga always ships things lightening fast and they're always beautifully packaged.

She also includes something a little extra and these were the extras this time. Love them! Yesterday was a good mail day all around!