Solstice Snickerdoodles! Sniff, Achoo!

An afterthought, another thought, oh my stars, it has happened.I could not figure out why I feel like crapola, and then the allergy count came on the news. Because we've already had a freeze, the f#;*%ing cedar has pollinated and those of us with "cedar fever" are going to be miserable until it rains/snows/sleets. Crikey, I hate those trees. Here is a quote from Untwisting The Cedar: the myths & culture of the Ashe juniper tree by Elizabeth McGreevy Seiler: "The mountain cedar, alias Ashe juniper, blue-berry juniper,post cedar, cedro, sabino, rock cedar, and Ozark white cedar, grows everywhere.It takes over and forms impenetrable thickets of twigs and branches that poke your eye and tear your clothing. Come winter every year, their clouds of yellow pollen roll down from the hillsides so as to plague you with months of sneezing, watery eyes and itching. In short, they plague you with that most famous allergy: cedar fever. Just when you're clear of the thickets and cedar fever, you hear that nothing grows under the damn scrappy trees except rocks and all they do is sit there all day sucking water from the aquifer. Hell, you figure, these cedars aren't native and they are totally useless, so, let's annihilate them all!" I've got my chainsaw and my bio-hazard suit, and I'm ready to get rid of some trees!

Snickerdoodles, snickerdoodles, rah, rah, rah!
Good with cocoa, good with cider, sis boom bah!

I slept. I slept so well, it's freakin' awesome. I wish I could do that every night. My baby felt better this morning and went off to school. She did not want to miss the Christmas party, and she took along a box of snickerdoodles made by yours truly out of the giant box of cookie mix. Yum.

Today is my sister's birthday (not the baker, the other one with the grown boys -- I have two sisters and a brother, four nephews and a niece). Today is also the Winter Solstice. Well, astronomically speaking tomorrow is. Solstice is one of my favorite times. We have a big fire with our Yule log out in the back 40 (yards, not acres). Cookies, cocoa, cider, laughing, watching the moon rise, looking at the stars. Then the days start getting longer and warmer. At least they do until February when we typically have at least one good ice storm. Like I've said before, we don't get snow. However, we do get ice. Last year we were all stuck in the house (with the pup) for three days! But we had fun!

Today, I have the house to myself. It is almost clean, the tree is ready for its ornaments, and tonight we'll go look at the pretty lights. I'll bake more cookies today. Finish up with the light housework tomorrow. Then everything is taken care of until January 2.

So, I want to get up earlier (I've been doing so) and to start being more active (a little of that as well). GG will laugh at this -- I want to better organize my studio and I want the business part of my business to become more organized! But how do I explain this next change, which is the most important?

I saw a bumper sticker the other day that said "Art is not a thing, it is a way." I want to live as an artist. I don't want to just play at it, I don't want to just say "I'm an artist". I want to truly live as an artist. I want to be immersed in my art, coming up for air when my family comes home in the afternoon, sleep the sleep of the righteous, do my yoga and pilates in the morning, and then immerse myself again. I want this to be my daily schedule from now until the sky falls down into the sea. You might think this would be easy to do. Ah, non, non, non, mes amis! C'est très difficile! Something always comes along and throws a monkey wrench into the machinery. But that is probably my own fault becau

oooooh look! A puppy!!

Happy Holidays, whichever you celebrate. I hope it's sunny wherever you are. I hope you stay warm and dry and loved. I will be back Wednesday morning!