Ambivalence

I finally finished this commissioned piece, which should have been done a long time ago -- and not just because the couple had been trying to get me to do it for a couple of years.  The gentleman finally got my attention while I was doing the Paseo show, and expressed some urgency. 
   
I have an ambivalent relationship with commissions.  On the one hand, it's really nice to know that someone likes my work well enough to hire me to do it, and, of course,  the (almost) guaranteed sale is nice as well.  BUT, on the other hand, it's work that I have to do, and that one fact just gets into my head.
    I'm what I've heard called a "frustrated perfectionist," which the man-spouse thinks of as a procrastinator with an excuse.  Essentially it means that if I know I can't do something perfectly, I won't do it at all.  In the case of commissioned work, that translates to, if I can't get a significant amount of work done, or if I'm at all worried that my frame of mind or lack of sleep, etc., will screw it up somehow, I put off working on it till I can be sure of the results.  Which means delays.
    The other problem is that I get stressed out about details.  This is, after all, somebody's [insert subject matter here.]  They're going to notice if it's wrong.  So, I will spend hours trying to get the details right in that shadow around the front door, and I'm impressed with myself when I've completed a square inch.
    The third problem is just my weird schedule combined with my bad time management skills.  And you can pile not getting enough sleep on top of that. 

The problem with NOT working on commissions is that I don't work on anything else either.  Because I'm not getting that thing done that I have to do, I'm sort of punishing myself by not doing the things I want to do.  So nothing gets done.  Jeez I'm pathetic.

I finished the piece late this afternoon, and I sent a photo in the text to the client.  She was very happy, but I had to explain that I couldn't get it to her right away because a co-worker had called in sick, and I had to take a long nap before work.  She said that that was fine.  I'm glad she likes it.

Warning Signs

It's The Weekend! (Don't waste it.)

First of all, Happy 4th of July everyone!  Or, if you happen to work in the service industry, Happy Tuesday.

Spring show season is over, and I've had a pretty good season.  Now it's time to work on other things.  At this moment I have a multi-picture framing project on my work table, a commissioned pen & ink drawing to do, and the drawings and paintings that I hope to have done by next spring.  My next planned event is the Pancakes & Booze show in September.  The plan, at this point, is to show some of my decoupage furniture and bottles.  I don't have enough done for a show yet, but that can change in... Oh, crap, that's only two months away.    

This is the first week with a normal schedule that I've had in a while, and I need to make the most of it.  I need to get my bookkeeping done for two shows, and send the tax commission a couple of checks.  I need to do a little inventory work and then put my boxes away. I desperately need a haircut, and I'm out of ropa interior limpia.  The girl dog needs a bath.  Also, all my ebay auctions are ending today.

Yes, I am doing that again.  It's been a while since I've had stuff up on ebay, though it's been on my mind forever.  I put some pics up last Monday, and I've already sold one of the '53 Chevy pics (Sandra Dee '53.)  I also set up an etsy account, but I still need to figure out how to use it.

I should make a to do list.  Anyway, I'm up, showered, and coffeed.  The man-spouse is getting ready for work, and we both need some breakfast.  The boy dog needs his medicine, and then it's time to get stuff done.

They're Trynta Wear Me Out

Working at the hotel, according to the calculator on my computer, only takes up about a third of my life, but somehow it seems to be the only thing I do lately.  When I take time off for shows, the following week has a six to nine day schedule.  After the Paseo show, I came back to eight days which coincided with our annual visit from a group of people who were here for the softball tournament.  These people move as a herd, bringing their 40+ cars (this year, the total number was 69) back from the venue about the time I'm arriving for my shift, and leaving again about the time I get off.  It's more fun than just doing the nightly paperwork, but eight days of that is exhausting.  And to make it more tiring, I was given a split weekend, so little or nothing is getting done at home.  This week, tonight (Sunday) is my only night off, because a few of the rest of our crew managed to escape for a few days, and I am needed to compensate for their absence.  Hopefully, next week will be back to normal.

The Paseo show (actually, Kathy's On The Paseo) was a very good show.  Good sales, no rain (or

monsoons, like two years ago.)  My Dad came to help set up, which was nice, and then he and Mom were there for teardown.  My Mom has never been there for either, so this was her first time seeing how it all packs up. Neither of them had ever been to the Paseo show.

I got some disappointing news from Tim, the fellow who prints my photos and cuts my frames.  His giclée machine had a clogged ink jet, which caused anything printed in blue to come out striped, which prevented him from printing my Tower Theatre pics.  Just before the show, his #1 assistant, Robin, informed me that he was going to have to get a whole new machine, and it could be months before he could afford it.  This also prevents him from printing the crayon pics, which I have orders for, and from resupplying those pics that sold at the Edmond and Paseo shows.  (Currently I am out of Skyline Signature (the First National Building.)  She said that there is someone else I can take them to, but they are more expensive.  I'm not going to be in desperate need till next year, but at least that gives me a back-up plan.

The plan, right now, is that I will be doing the Pride show on June 24th and 25th.  I sent in my entry a couple of weeks ago and haven't heard back, so I don't know what's going on.  They're not a particularly organized show.  They refer to it as an art show, but when I was there two years ago, I was the only artist in a sea of venders.  My neighbors were selling windows, legal services, veterinary services, and dietary supplements.  It put me in a unique position.  But this year, they dropped the price of the entry back down to normal levels, so I thought I'd give them a try again.  Teardown is rushed because of the parade, so I don't think I'll be taking my whole show.  Maybe just four screens with small pictures.

Today's plan is to get my laundry done, take some photos for a commission, do my bookkeeping, mow the lawn, and hopefully get in a four hour nap before I go back to work tonight.  Which would require getting off the computer.  So... type at y'all later.

Ready, Except For The Color Blue

The Edmond show is coming up this weekend.  First show of the year, and I am extraordinarily ready (as opposed to my usual MO of scrambling till the last minute to get matting and framing done, and all my furniture ready.)  I did all my inventorying weeks ago, and got all my new stuff framed and matted and shrinkwrapped, and the old stuff is fully stocked, too.

There are a couple of things that are not ready, but those are currently out of my control.  One of my new photos, the one of the Tower Theatre, has been delayed because of a technical problem.  One of the inkjets on Tim's wonderful giclée machine is clogged, and when he prints anything with blue in it, it gets stripes.  I have two prints of that picture with that flaw, and I'm still deciding whether to go ahead and bring them to the show.  If I do, they'll be unmatted and signed as artist proofs.

I also ordered a couple of prints of the pen & ink crayon pic, but that has that one blue crayon, and Tim hasn't printed them yet because they'd have the same problem.  He's farming out the work to someone else, tho, so hopefully they'll be ready by the time the Paseo show rolls around.

Speaking of blue, I used the extra time to change my color scheme.  For the last... well, however long I've had them, my print file and boxes have been some shade of forest green.  This year, I've painted them a nice, rich royal blue.  I also made another print file, as the old one was getting crowded.  Now, with two of them, my tent is going to look crowded, so I'm going to have to figure out the best arrangement.

I do need to make some business cards.  Can't forget those.  That would be bad.

The Challenge

  My biggest problem with getting something done lately -- uh, well, always --has just been commitment and time management.  A few weeks ago, I dug out that pen & ink drawing I'd put aside a couple of years ago, as well as a couple of others, and decided I was going to at least give it a try to get it done by the shows coming up in May.  I got out all my tools, cleaned my pens, and got it all ready to go... and then did other stuff. 
    I mentioned this to a co-worker, Chris, one morning as I was getting ready to leave, and he issued me a challenge:  to work on the drawing for at least an hour, maybe two, between the time I get home from work and the time I go to bed.

It's actually working.  I took these pics to show him my progress:

Now, I don't know if I'll get it done in time for the shows.  It's a complicated and labor intensive piece, and fairly large, but at least I'm making progress.