This is an 8 x 10 mixed-media piece. It has hidden motivational quotes to remind me that I can motivate and choose my mood. I started focusing on the words and thought they needed to be accented but I realize that I am in the control. I was feeling abstract when using my turquoise paint. Finishing this piece gave me confidence. This piece has sold!
Moody Funk
This is a 5 x 7overlay of mixed acrylics. I felt like I was tippy-toeing around with the dots. Then I started my funky movement. I then when back with different shades of turquoise. I finalized it with gold accents.
Eggnesty Mood
My favorite size is 11×14, this one has acrylic. I started with colors that may have been used for this series. I change shades as I progressed through the background. I realize that I wanted to create an oval-like shape. I also wanted to tie in some gold. This reminds me of eggs in a nest.
I learned a lot from this event. You need to keep cash whether you want it or not. Always carry business cards. Also, set up a clear inventory sheet to keep track of sales. Get a better-organized way to display your items. Have a separate storage container for your items. A co-artist suggested, “freeze a bottle of water the night before”, I thought that was helpful too. Then remember that everyone has their own selling style.
This was streamed last night but I still find it quiet interesting. I saw some new characters and it is worth watching this game play before playing yourself. This is a continues to: The Last of Us Remastered. So I think it is important to start from the beginning.
_Chickenboyy_ has been gaming for sometime now. He has down a few live streams but I think he is trying to make a dent in the live stream realm. He has a few followers but definitely is worth your time. He is pretty good with chat. I am a fan now and will continue posting his content.
I have been making masks to sell and pouches. I have been painting and sculpting. I have been trying to keep busy and not think of all the things happening around me which could push me into a deep depression. I am hoping that I can help and inspire others to do things to keep them from insanity.
I have a website for my products that I sell. I haven’t done any marketing because that would mean that I would have to increase my productivity. Also, I am making new things to add all the time. I have a lot of old items that I will start selling. I am going to list my newest item.
I am not sure if anyone cares but I also share here some of my friends blog posts or items there are selling. I need to find more people who want to spend the time creating to ease their troubled heart. Please tell me what you think about my site, products, or how I am doing on this blog.
This is something I wrote in my therapy writing workshop:
Fall Leaves
In the fall the leaves com down and are left behind. We loose loved ones too. Some fall down and are left by the way side. I know it is hard to let the leaves fall where they may but at times we must let them go to prepare for new ones. I know that the same emotions and thought can be applied to our loved ones. Sometimes we loose people due to tragedy or they just move on but if we accept it we can open our hearts for new people that may fill the void or help with the transition. Life is full of disappointments, loss, and new experiences. We can wait for things to happen or we can do nothing and we won’t move forward.
I started the day with running errands and ran into a few people that was currently using the #airbnb for a place to stay. One was a South American sounding individual. He said him and his wife was paying monthly about $600 for rent. They said it was way cheaper than renting. They started with traveling with it but now they are just living here in Denver paying these prices. I think it would be cool to rent out a room or a place without a major lease.
The second person was young and decided to travel while he was young. His destination is Las Vegas but for now he his going from place to place. He started in California then used AirBnb there then traveled by bus to Phoenix, Arizona. He stayed with his grandparents but moved to an Airbnb paying weekly rates. He then traveled to Denver to try things here for a while. He lost his ID and had to revert to day labor as a form of income to pay for his place to stay for the week. Once he has acquired his identification he will then travel to Las Vegas use AirBnB again until he gets a job and permanent housing.
The third person I met was and older one on the bus traveling to her home. She said that after she retired from her job, she decided to travel around the world. She used planes, trains, buses, and AirBnb to live. She said she used her Social Security Income to do this and she wants to write a book about her travels. She said it was going to be called a face looking adventure not Facebooking because the traveling was making her look at people faces and talking to them. Not the opposite which was looking at faces on social media and posting messages.
Just the name of this book give me strength to keep moving through my life. This is a book written by a friend’s sister. She has to be one the most courageous people to write about her life and how she made it through. It’s a kind of road map through struggles and how to forgive things that were difficult. I won’t spoil it for you. Click on the link to check it out for yourself. Ethelgoodrich.com
Now let’s get back to my update. I have been working on loosing weight. I have also been working on keeping my business legitimate. Finally, working on relationships that I want or don’t want in my life. There are a couple of other things like sewing, art, and advocacy, but I will talk about that another time.
My weight loss journey has been slow. I have been taking one of those shots but I struggle with proper diet and exercise. Apparently, some of the side effects is loss of appetite, muscle loss, and fatigue. So I am trying to build myself up with walking and I am attempting to consume more protein. This is hard with no energy to exercise and no desire to eat. I have lost 25 lbs. I want to loose another 40lbs. I started at the end of June last year but I am not down enough. I know more movement will help. So for it’s an uphill struggle.
As for my business I hired an assistant. They work once a week doing odd jobs for me. I want to give them more to do like helping me clean. I have also been working on keeping my books up to date which is really hard. Trying to be a bookkeeper, the operations person, and the marketing team, turns out to be exhausting. You have to consider that I also manufacture the majority of my items. This means that I am also the productions manager too, lol.
Finally, lets talk about relationships. I went a lovely retreat in Florissant, CO and have an amazing time. I took a workshop with Ebony on relationships and it explained that I should think more deeply on how valuable they are. For example, toxic relationship should be neutralized so that I am freed to spend more time on myself and not negative emotions. I have other relationships that are not mutually beneficial. I should be receiving a good amount from them.
So to conclude this update, I have been busy. I will try to post some of my interactions with these things below. I hope that I can keep up with all these things and keep growing as the person that I want to be. Love you guys!
A friend is sharing her store one video at a time about her journey. She has health issues that prevent her from working. Please like and subscribe she has a powerful story Here is her video:
This is a representation of her story before she passed away. Teri lived in a Colorado Coalition for the Homeless building called CCA aka YMCA at the “top of the 16th street mall”. Her boyfriend lived there too but in a separate apartment. She was so talented and vibrant. She also was a Core Reach Artist and Redline Contemporary Art Center. The picture here is from our ACLU exhibition.
Prior to this living arrangements she live on the streets and found creative ways to make due until she was housed. She was survived by (I may not remember everyone) her mother, brother, daughter, and grandchildren. Of course, her family at Redline and her boyfriend also grieves of her abscense.
I can not fully tell her story but I will do my best at attempting it.
She complained about her living arrangements frequently but I remember one workshop we had attended where she had a breakdown. She was at the wits end. We all comforted her at the end of the workshop but she was still really frustrated. She told me about not being able to keep any electronics in her apartment because it was always stollen. So she keeps everything on paper and she was tech savvy. The main reason she couldn’t keep electronics (phones, laptops, etc) is that she had no lock on her apartment door.
Ok, this upset me because there is apartment managers present weekly, case managers on site throughout the week, and other staff members (maintenance, cleaning person, etc) present weekly if not daily. I told her to go to her residence council or ask for manager’s upper levels. She said tried everything to get a lock on her door.
So about 4 weeks after the workshop, I heard that she was dead. No one will give a full story but here is the pieces that I heard:
Her boyfriend and her were sleep in her apartment. Someone came in, knocked him out and killed her. WOW! Remember there was no lock on her door, as the art shows. It wasn’t breaking and entering. I felt so disgusted with the organization for not replacing her lock regardless of whatever excuse they may use. So I waited until my heart could not lash out at them or the staff that I listed above. I am still disappointed on how this happened.
This is just my account of this story. I did get permission from her daughter to write about it. I want to ask everyone to not judge the company but look think of ways to prevent future things like this from happening to any human being. Donations of door locks, volunteer you carpentry skills, or just go sit with someone to help them through a crisis.
From the mouth of Elevated Denver. “We’re excited to share that Episode 1: Reimagining Homelessness Solutions: Inside the Collaboratory of our special three-part podcast series is now live!
This episode takes you behind the scenes of Elevated Denver’s Collaboratory, where lived experts, service providers, policymakers, and business leaders came together to rethink how we address homelessness. You’ll hear directly from co-designers and champions about the challenges, breakthroughs, and what makes this model so powerful.” Listen now!
There are two organizations that I am supporting Redline Contemporary Art Center and Elevated Denver. Of course, you are welcome to donate to my site to grow my business.
Redline has been a great support for me. I have been able to become a real artist and have confidence in myself. They promoted and connected me to other places (artlifting) to improve my success as an artist. Donate
Elevated Denver has helped me become known in the local community as an advocate for the unhoused (the homeless). They allowed me to be on their podcast and be on their advisory board. They are working on solutions to homelessness, for example using a collaborator to find that solution. Donate
Well, I am trying to build my art business. I intend to share my practices with the unhoused to help them feel that they too can feel like a member of society. I sew items for a therapeutic value. I also make art for a therapeutic value. I also love to repurpose, recycle, and reuse items for art, clothing, or other meaningful things. You can either purchase from my products page or donate.
Chacalit 
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