Moving over to a new blog

I'm trying to consolidate my google accounts a bit and while I'm now on google plus and post a lot of of shorter items there, I wanted to keep this for longer ramblings and following some of my favorite artists. I'm going to try for a weekly update here - both on studio work but also on random writings.

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Happiness inside yourself

There's an interesting phenomenon I sometimes encounter in the SCA - and in the mundane world as well - wherein the idea of self-satisfaction has been completely removed from the individual and placed upon others. This sometimes plays off mildly with moments of cranky and sometimes seems to lead to intense dissatisfaction with almost everything. There are two key facets to this I've been contemplating. The first is that someone else doing something they enjoy does not reduce or depreciate the thing you enjoy. We all have vastly different interests and its important that we give ourselves - and our populace - the opportunity to pursue those interests. Events do better when they are open to any number of those interests and offer activities that hit more than one area. We've seen this again and again with "specific" events that cater to only one subsection which then do substantially better if other interest areas are pulled in in various ways (Art Sci and Sco...

Why we serve

Since becoming a peer, and particularly since becoming a landed baroness, there's often this moment where I go to take action and three or more people leap to stop me. Now, I have accepted that I will often not carry my own things - though this is sometimes difficult. I have accepted that I will often delegate a problem solved that I would have often taken care of myself - though this too is difficult. But there's a reason that sometimes at the end of feast James and I stealth off to the kitchen to grab pots and towels and dirty dishes. There's a reason sometimes we are found with coronets safely tucked aside as we move tent poles or hold stakes or wield a hammer, or why sometimes we even unload our own thrones from the car when there are hands nearby to help. There is a reason when people say "I want you happy at the event" that my response is always "I want the populace happy. We are here for you." Understand that it is not because we do not wish a...

Growth mindset

This post is a two-fer, relevant to both the SCA and to my work as an educator. We are reading a book called "Mindset" for our professional development book this year at our school. I'm at a new school this year and it was a book that was readily available and encouraged in my old school so this is actually my second read of this particular theory. Really, I'm posting about it today because the subject of "panic!" came up in discussion. I don't like panic. Panic shuts your brain down and stops you from making decisions. Panic doesn't help. Panic, really, just gets the heck in the way of getting things done in my life. Whenever possible, I try to not panic. It is, in general, much more beneficial for me to take a step back and instead of being upset, try to figure out how to fix whatever situation it is that is causing the upset. Sometimes that is managing a tremendous amount of mentor activity at work. Sometimes that is trying to figure out why ...

Phoenix Feathers

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