In response to Robert Genn's "Love your Name"

I've had my share of names in this life time. When I started painting I was Weisel. Weisel quickly turned into Weisel-Keisser then just Keisser. Then I moved on to Keisser-Jirik which became Jirik. I took a break from painting, but not name changing. I was glad to skip that next name and go directly into Jirik-Guichu. Alas I have settled permanently on Guichu. My husband is real happy about that, too. There was a time between Jirik and Guichu when I seriously considered changing to O'Malley. I hadn't ever met an O'Malley so I thought it would be safe - thankfully I didn't. I would have ended up with Jirik-O'Malley-Guichu, or maybe Weisel-Keisser-Jirik-O'Malley-Guichu. Talk about an identity crisis. My advise to all female painters is to pick a name and stick with it. Collectors will take you more seriously and your personal life won't be plastered all over your artwork.

2nd Day of my New Year

Today I want to talk about "BE BACKS". A lot of you artists have probably evolved from the weekend fine art shows to dealing only with galleries, but you must be able to remember the "BE BACKS".

In Early December my "FOR SURE" customer said he wouldn't have money for the painting he was buying from me until after December 31st. Okay, my first reaction was, Hum Bug, there goes Christmas. It hadn't flashed at me yet. I still had it in my desperate 'I need that sale' mind set that after Dec. 31st meant January 1, 2009. A few days passed and it hit me. He may be a "BE BACK" kind of guy. (Did you catch that 'may be'? I'm still holding out hope.) I mean really, what does after Dec. 31st really mean? Does it mean January 1st or April 16th or August 21st, 2054?

It wasn't that long ago, (well about 15 years, but who's counting) when I was sitting in a park with my easy-up and paintings taking a tally of how many BE BACKS I had talked to that day. All of the artists would get together at the end of the day and compare lists. I guess you had to be there. It was fun. I would want to say, "when will you be back?" Five minutes, three hours, tomorrow, NEVER!

I had such a tremendous day yesterday. So many incredibly cool people have joined me on Twitter. So I took inventory. Instead of stressing over my BE BACK I can slip over and listen to Mike Dooley, founder of TUT.com remind me that my thoughts become things. Just listening to him makes me driven to think January 1st, 2009 not 2054. After I center my positive thought process I can jump right back into Alyson Standfield's book "I'd Rather be in the Studio". Then I'll go to MCHammer's site and listen to poetic music while I paint.

It's going to be another great day. You have one, too.

Comment on Robert Genn's "Channeling Negative Energy" Dec.12, 2008

Getting together with family isn't my most anticipated endeavor. I'm the one in my family who always wants to make nice. But during the holidays I'm put to the test. Two years ago I did a painting between Thanksgiving and Christmas. My husband finally begged me to take it down. He felt so much anger coming from it that it was distracting and depressing to him. I tried everything I could to cheer it up, but the drama just wouldn't go away. Gesso was my only option. I do think that stress and conflict can produce some powerful work. Perhaps, for many of us, painting is our way of escaping reality. During times of high stress, the strength that it takes to shed it comes out in our work.

Art Jury Competition

One Step Up From Third was accepted into the Fall/Winter 2008 show.

Today is the beginning of my New Year. I'm a bit early, but I have to get started. I've decided to create boundaries this year. I'm setting aside 4 hours a day for art. No phone calls or interruptions will be allowed except emergencies which will come through on my cell phone. That's an easy one since only four family members have that number and I have told them of my plans so they know not to use it unless it is a dire emergency. That will be up for interpretation I'm sure.

This sounds harsh to those around me, but it's more of an exercise for me. I need the discipline of not answering the phone. I need to concentrate on building my business of art. Whether it involves reading other art blogs, working on my website, studying the business of promotion or painting, I will be doing it between 11am and 3pm, Monday through Friday every week this year. I will leave open the days I clean my parents house and I'm sure there will be some days I will need to go there to fit things. But I will try to make it before 11am or after 3pm.

It has occurred to me that I've been full of excuses to insure my failure. I tell myself that I must be there for my parents. Both of them have health issues. Then there are my grandchildren that I love and am happily responsible for 4 out of the 5 school days and nights each week. They need me to collect them from school and give them my attention. I can't leave out my husband who has a tendency to call me 4 or 5 times a day and I do have friends that need to tell me all their problems, too. Boundaries. That's the ticket. If I can do it so can they. There's going to be a bit of an adjustment period, but I'll let you know how it goes. I'm optimistic that all of us can make it through.

Negative interaction brings my creativity to a screeching halt. If I can discipline myself to not allow negativity or any interference into my life for 4 itty bitty hours a day I can only imagine how much I will be able to accomplish toward my goals.

Happy beginning of 2009 to all of you. Let me know what your goals are and we can all help each other sit up straight and get on with it.