looking back: coincidental beginings in March 2009

Last month, I stumbled upon the sketchbook I purchased back in March of 2009 to start drawing again.

Shortly after purchasing that sketchbook, I noted about how sore my unused art muscles were from all the drawing.

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This past weekened I ran my second half-marathon (part of preparing for my first full length marathon) and remembered a doodle I did for inspiration back when I just starting to run again; come to find out that was back in March of '09 as well.

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I like coincidences, so I had to make a note of this convergence. It's satisfying to feel the different muscles flex, muscles that I did not have back in the spring of '09; down my torso and legs, through the pathways of my creative hand & eye tissues.

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I do have muscle soreness: hamstrings and knees that groan and complain after long runs, occasional "I'm-not-good-enough" spasms as I draw. I take these as givens in both fields. These aches and pains are more pleasing to me than the dull safe void of not trying at all.

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That is all.

two posts I want to write when I have time...

One: Because I just finished reading The Fox Woman and also The Wind Up Girl, two radically different (and highly satisfactory) books that both, in their own ways, touched upon the theme of women created to please men... It's something I wanted to process a bit, but haven't had the time yet. (Really, you MUST read these books, both of them brilliant.)
[March update: finally got around to writing this one.]

Two: Because as part of training for this marathon I am revisiting many of the hills and mountains that I used a few years ago when preparing to hike the Grand Canyon rim to rim, and remembering what role they played in my own spiritual journey, and the almost universal role that mountains seem to play in spiritual journeys across cultures.

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But first, before I write those posts, I REALLY must finish these panels for Traitors and Tyrants (coming soon in Monsters and Mormons) and work on illustrations for 20spec and inSitu, (etc). PLUS... I just registered to attend the Word Fantasy Convention and I want to create a body of new paintings to submit to the Juried Art show there. (wow, it's been forever since I did submitted stuff to a juried show, both excited and nervous.)

Anyhow... eventually I'll get around to writing those two posts. Just got to get some other stuff done first.