before i jump into this post, i want to give thanks to sofia at sofia’s ideas for the kind mention on her blog recently. i’ve written in the past about how awkward i am at accepting blog awards, but i didn’t want it to pass without expressing my sincere appreciation. it’s always nice to be thought of, and even nicer to be written about with such generous words. thank you sofia.

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do you make resolutions? i am not one to make formal resolutions. new year’s day is a new beginning, true. but it’s only that because of the conventions we use to mark the passage of time.  different cultures have different times of year when this beginning happens.

that said, the symbolism behind a calendar year ending and a new one beginning isn’t entirely lost on me. it is a convenient time to reflect, but i guess i’m saying there’s no reason why we can’t have a new beginning each time the sun rises. inspiration can happen at any time, right? we can summon our enthusiasm and tackle new things throughout the year.

i try to remember that.

i realized something a few weeks ago. i was working on a drawing when mr.madeItSo walked into the room and asked, “what are you smiling about?”

i looked up from the paper, surfacing from whatever world i was lost within. i was smiling? now, that tells me something: not only do i love to draw, but apparently, it makes me happy.

a simple but often difficult quest, isn’t it, to do that which makes you happy? usually the “doing” is the hard part, with all the demands we have on any given day. i’ve hardly reached enlightenment but i am going to pursue this in the year ahead and see where it takes me.

on a related note, i got photoshop creative suite 5 over the holidays along with a giant manual. the paper kind. technical computer stuff intimidates me, and yet, i don’t want to shut out a whole realm of creative tools just because i think it’s too complicated. i have gotten as far as i can using the applications i’ve shared here before. they have been a good introduction to digital imaging and manipulation.

but i want to create more. and i want to share. and since my outlet for sharing is primarily online, i need to step up and learn the best ways to do this.

seasoned photoshop people, please have a giggle: i am on page 31 of 800+ … if i’ve gone quiet, you’ll know where i am.  but be a dear and send one of those rescue dogs, with a barrel of coffee tied to its neck?

yes, one of those will do.

perhaps the next time you see that dog, he’ll be a 3D technicolor vision of lifelike realism which will leave you in awe of my newfound photoshop skills. or at the very least, i’ll learn how to crop out my to-do list (and that scribbly-bit you do when your pen’s ink isn’t flowing at first).  baby steps.

not long after my realization above, i opened a fortune cookie and found this…

and then this…

which to me means… draw. lots. if it makes you happy.

(and cut back on the take-out food already!)

maybe i do make resolutions afterall.