I moved to Richmond, Virginia 3 years ago from Los Angeles, where I'd lived my entire life. I wanted seasons. I wanted a slower pace of life. I wanted less traffic. Be careful what you wish for.
Seasons back east means 6 months of cold weather. It's relatively mild in Richmond, so the snow isn't obnoxious to me, but the cold portion lasts so long! Perhaps what I really wanted was cold weather for about 6 weeks. LA gets heat year round. Which some folks might love - but I thought it got monotonous, and really, who wants101ºF weather on Halloween?
The slower pace of life is actually wonderful, but a slow life in the south combined with older age and MS symptoms means that I have all but atrophied in the past year or so. In summer it is hot, muggy, and my porch is my favorite place to hang and watch the world wander by. In winter, it's too chilly to venture out for more than the time it takes to go from my heated home, out to my heated car, then into my heated destination. Spring and Fall (and temps in the 70's) are too short and I'm too lethargic from the other seasons to have time to reboot and really get busy. It's not that I actually spend all my time at home or at the studio, but I seem to spend all my time at home or in my studio! I had envisioned walks in the woods (of which there are many), trips to the museum (I've been less than 10 times in 2.5 years), excursions to distant lands (well, I've visited home, Atlanta, Washington DC, and a few other locations - so I guess I've done a fair bit of traveling).
Lack of traffic is bliss. I have nothing bad to say about that. If I want traffic I'll drive to DC or Baltimore, or go to Virginia Beach where I get to drive on a 5 lane highway. I'm fine with the lack of traffic.
So this is my attempt at re motivating. What I'd really like is for us to be interactive. For you to comment and ask questions and engage in mutual communication. So let's play a game. It's my favorite "getting to know you" activity. It's called "Two Truths and a Lie". I'll start. You guess which statement is NOT true.
1. I was born Laura Elizabeth Freed
2. I graduated college with a BA in psychology
3. A very trusting (or high on crack) conductor once let me 'drive' a train for a mile and a half
Now it's your turn. Who are you? What are your thoughts? What motivates your cyber surfing? Where shall we go from here?
8 comments:
Hi Lora!
Congratulations on (re) starting your blog! I know practically nothing about you, except that I'm with you on the Masters' registry group, which means that we're colleagues, on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean (OK you leave much closer to it).
I'm considering different ways to make my work more visible (be it objects or classes that I teach), and blogging might be a way, (if I start again, I'll make sure to put dates on my entries!) - and I have to fight the idea that FB has killed the blogs...
But reading this specific entry of yours will add weight on the side "let's blog again"!
I live in Switzerland, where you'll be welcome anytime you decide to travel further than the area you live in. We definitely have 4 seasons although they often get mixed up, it's sometimes confusing!
2 truths and 1 lie about me:
- I used to be a nurse in a previous life
- I speak Spanish, German, English and French
- I plan to go through the Masters' registry challenge over the next 5-7 years (!)
Hi Lora, nice to see you back again, can't believe its three years since your move. As you know I live in Melbourne Australia, and my chum. Maggie Bergman introduced me to so many if he metal clay community when we attended the 2008 PMC conference. I enjoy messing in my studio which I was lucky to be able to build a few years ago, though I don't seem to get I it often enough. I still do sme PMC teaching! mostly introduction class! though quite a few student some back for specialist classes. Been drawing this year as part of Helga quantity sketching which Ive loved, though again a bit slack.
I think no 1 is the untruth, can imagine you driving a tram and sort of think you have the degree
My three
1. I was In the airforce
2. I love to scuba dive
3. Teachers told me I wasn't artistic
Hi Lora
Lovely to read this and maybe I need to reactivate my blog too. I think we have a few things in common including being enrolled in the Masters Registry programme and having MS. You would be welcome to visit here too - I live on the North York Moirs in the UK, about 12 miles from the North East coast.
I think maybe numer 1, but nowhere near sure?
Mine are
1. I used to teach history of architecture
2. I have a cat and a dog
3. I got married this year
Hey Lora, my friend! Great to read you again! Ok, My wild guess is that Freed is about as cool as Hart Freed Hart!) so I'll choose N°2 (psychology degree) as the intruder.
My 3:
1.Walked on fire when I was 5
2.Don't know how to draw
3.Hate chocolate
Smooches to you and everyone above!
Oh, wait, that's 2 wrongs and one right for me ;) I'm a mess in the morning!
One of the benefits (I guess) to WordPress is that you can reply to a specific comment. I can't here, so I'll say THANK YOU ALL for the comments and for telling me a little about yourselves!
Caroline - I was in Montreux in 1980. So beautiful. I'd love to go back one day. I sang at the Jazz Festival. :) You're in the Registry, so I think 3 is true. Europeans seem to know an awful lot of foreign languages, so I think 2 must be true, so that leaves 1 for the lie?
Carol - So glad Miss Maggie convinced to you come to the conference! Meeting you was a highlight that year. And so glad we'e kept in touch through FB. Teacher's tell lots of kids stupid things so 3 might be true, I can believe that you were in the military - don't ask me why, so does that leave scuba to be the lie? And you live on the Barrier Reef? Shame!
Lynne - I think I'll be in Cornwall next fall (don't tell yet, it's still a secret). Donna will be in the north at the same time. Lets get together in London and go to the Tower! I want to take a historical tour and see if I can find those poor princes. I don't remember reading about a marriage, so I think that might be a lie.
Angela - please! You hating chocolate? Has hell frozen over?
I changed the spelling of my first name in Jr. High (everyone else was changing their names too) and my last name when I started doing make up (it's my Mother's maiden name), I DID drive a train after a commercial shoot having spent all day going back and forth from nowhere to nowhere so the camera on solid ground could get a shot, and I took one semester of college classes (including a child psych class) before dropping out. I think I'd do better in school now.
Thanks again everyone. I'll see you again soon.
Hi, Lora, I'm a big fan of your work, your teaching, and your writing. I'm glad to know you well and to have eaten meals with you on both sides of the U.S. and also in-between! Yay for your return to the blog and to getting back to basics. I think #2 is the lie, mostly because I'm hoping #3 is true and that you'll tell us the whole story. As for me, I live in Pittsburgh, PA, and after lots of teaching, I'm yearning to focus back on making and marketing.
Here are my entries:
1. My secret indulgence is watching football.
2. At one time, I had intended to become a sex therapist.
3. I was first-runner-up in a Junior Miss pageant.
Donna - I'm wanting to do much more creative making (as opposed to teaching-related making) marketing too. Let's keep accountable to each other. I think all of yours could be true, although I don't understand anyone liking football. All that violence and head bashing. I'm stumped! Did you see my comment above where I tell a bit about the train? Talk to you later my dear. Thanks for the comment.
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