02/12/2006: "The state of one's room is the state of one's mind"

Sat. night I stayed up late doing some "spring" cleaning. I sorta spazzed out and suffice it to say that my entire house/studio is *really* clean now. I mean, I cleaned out the fridge, my bedroom drawers, I went through closets and removed paint stained clothes and ripped them up for studio rags. I made a small pile of nice things to take to Good Will (if anyone wants the last 4 months of Art Calendar let me know and I'll mail em to ya)....but mostly I dusted, organized, sorted and scrubbed.

Then I accidentally left a sweet potato in the toaster oven over night (on low) but my god, the place smells amazingly yummy today...I want to lick the walls! Plus, I discovered that the Innocence Mission's music is incredibly easy to play and sounds great on my teeny tiny guitar. (I want to lick the Innocence Mission's guitar)... sigh

Now that everything is tidy I can get back to painting. There is some kind of "Bell Curve of Soil and Sloth" involved in my artistic process. When things in the studio are great, everything else falls by the way side until some kind of critical mass is reached, beyond which I can no longer bear it...one day I'll notice I'm semi-concious, blanketed in fine dust of Cheesy Poofs and Liquin fumes...I'll drag myself out of the muck, clean up, and the cycle begins again.

For tonight I am a happy clean and (relatively decongested) girl; I will sleep soundly in fresh flannel sheets while visions of sweet potatoes dance in my head (to the tune of Tomorrow on the Runway Dsus2, Em, F#m, Em, A ).

Replies: 10 Comments

on Monday, February 13th, ann said

The people who are the tidiest seem to have a regular routine: they have to clean on Saturday or Sunday, for example. But what if something fabulous comes up? I'm not gonna pass that up so I can vacuum. And maybe I just like having a day where I'm covered in Chessy Poofs and chocolate, with a remote in one hand and a novel in another? As you can probably tell, I have a cycle of Sloth or Shine, which follows some unknown rhythm. A rhythm I've learned to accept.

on Monday, February 13th, Elise said

You know, you're right! I used to live with someone like that, and he would try to get me to clean early on Sat. mornings and I'd just be like...you have to be kidding right?

My dad has a schedule for everything now too, like laundry on Sunday nights etc. I guess it's a pretty good system, I'm just not very good at being systematic.

It's great because since I live alone, the times I let things slide, it doesn't affect anyone else.

Did you get your chocolate? Sees! yummy!!!

on Monday, February 13th, leahpeah said

oh my gosh i want to come to your house. i like clean and organized. and i'll bring my own guitar to lick.

on Monday, February 13th, Elise said

Stop by anytime Leahpeah! I have been watching a lot of those home improvement shows lately, like "Curb Appeal", "Trading Spaces" and "House Hunters" and one of the things they seem to always address are inventive ways to organize and store stuff. It has inspired me to try and organize my studio better, and to actually (possibly) build some storage in one of my "spare rooms" as my art supplies and equipment starts to slowly take over more and more of my living area.

But then again, art is living right?

Oh, and do you play guitar? If you did stop by we could work on some "guitar licks" together...
:laugh:

on Monday, February 13th, ann said

Yes, I got my chocolate. If I would have been thinking (and not quite so sleep deprived), I would have told you to open them up and taste them for me :)

on Monday, February 13th, Elise said

That's ok, I'm pretty sure I still have chocolate in my system from your b-day cake!

on Monday, February 13th, RB said

"one day I'll notice I'm semi-concious, blanketed in fine dust of Cheesy Poofs and Liquin fumes"

For some reason I really like that imagery. :D

on Monday, February 13th, Elise said

Hey RB, you might like the imagery in the abstract, but let me tell ya, the real thing ain't purrty!
;)

on Tuesday, February 14th, Rod said

I'm trying to think of all the men you've lived with other than your dad, and I know it surely wasn't me trying to get you to clean on a saturday morning, I think it was the opposite. ;)
Was it RQ? I could see that. Or that fellow we'll call Cary, A.K.A. "My party's not over yet!"? I don't know, but he did keep strange hours. :plain:

on Tuesday, February 14th, Elise said

Yes, it was RQ...and ahhh, I haven't thought of Cary in some time. Cute boy for all his...let's call them "quirks"...
:laugh: