What should people in our situation do when a client turns “icky?” How does one balance a professional independence earned through years of effort with the pressing need to build more business?
Not an easy decision . . .
Archive for April, 2007
Today’s sticky wicket
Monday, April 23rd, 2007mind clippings
Saturday, April 21st, 2007just took on more “ownership” of cycling advocacy at the state level — don’’t think about it — too much to accomplish before we fly to Texas — don’t doubt yourself — missing Hurray Day with my Clan — don’t fret about it — haven’t gone to the gym in a week — do some pushups — can’t think of titles that will help sell my art — don’t fear the unknown — grass is still growing — just mow, dammit
Pianos along the Oregon Trail
Thursday, April 19th, 2007Seldom during my life have I felt so fulfilled and so beleaguered at the same time. Over the years, I’ve persevered through hundreds of stressful deadlines, but now I can finally appreciate what an artist goes through leading up to a solo exhibition. I want to execute all my ideas, but I know that I’m running out of time, and now I have to sandwich in a couple days for my KBBC annual retreat. As I continuously evaluate the intensity of labor required to finish my show as planned, in light of the dwindling quantity of available time, I’m preparing myself to abandon some significant desires and more than few high hopes.
A man of springtime
Tuesday, April 17th, 2007Can’t help but be thinking about my father today, since he would’ve been 84, but actually I’ve been thinking about him all month. Everyone has been waiting for the weather to warm up like it has, but he would’ve loved this chilly April anyway. Few kinds of weather could hold him indoors, especially at this time of year.
Dana and I paid a visit to Pike Valley Farm this afternoon to meet with our newest clients and take a tour of their lakeside organic operation. What a day for it! And what great satisfaction my Dadbo would’ve derived from our enjoyable “inspection.”
It seems like all I’ve been dealing with lately are studio curve balls and unexpected challenges to my harmony. It helps me to recall how many of those he had to face in his life, and how often he took them in stride, if they presented an opportunity for service to others. But I also remember how particular things would aggravate him or rattle his nerves, and it reminds me that I’ve inherited his temperament. So I tell myself to relax, even though I’m still not very good at it.
I want to say more about him, but tonight I can’t hope to equal what I wrote for his birthday a year ago. It would please me for you to click and read it again, too.
Powder and tweed
Sunday, April 15th, 2007I put aside all my stresses for a day and a half and enjoyed the company of some very fine people who came to David’s cabin for his second spring rifle competition. After participating in the Saturday morning shoot with an Australian .310 Cadet rifle (tied for fifth place), I kept score in the afternoon for relay number two of the British Single Shot Sporting Rifle Match. With the miserable weather that blew through, we couldn’t have had better luck than when the rain stopped long enough to preserve the event as originally planned. David said he couldn’t have pulled it off without me. In spite of prior misgivings, I was glad to have been there, to have helped out my friend, and to have solidified relationships with some of the region’s top experts on Victorian firearms.
Various & Sundry, part fifty
Friday, April 13th, 2007— Dana and I had an interesting conference yesterday. We met a guy at a Starbucks in Lexington, unsure about exactly how his role dovetailed with our new project for ftb-automotive. We thought he might be a bedroom Web designer, and he turned out to be a top executive with HOST Communications, one of the most prominent providers of interactive services in Central Kentucky. You never know.
— The Arts Across Kentucky deal came through, and I was able to get a drum-scan of my Band Festival poster art in time to touch it up and forward it on to the magazine for today’s deadline. Dana took time to revise my biographical profile, and it’s almost beginning to sound halfway credible.
— NBC makes episodes of its series available online, so Dana and I just had to watch the season closer for “FNL” that we missed on her birthday. Even though it was inside a little box, and the video was kinda jerky and crude, and I was listening with cheap headphones, the finale choked me up. Peter Berg’s extraordinary show has me totally captivated. Now I’’ll be on edge ’til I find out if it gets picked up for a second year.
— This weekend is David’s scheduled event at the Simpson Range—his .310 Cadet and British Single Shot Sporting Rifle Matches. I’ll be combining some business with pleasure, and it’s certain to be a great time, but I have to admit I’m getting a bit concerned about how many days I have left to prepare for KOSMOS.
My Senior Sweetie
Wednesday, April 11th, 2007Last night’s Salvation Army Annual Dinner was a smashing success. Today I realized all the work for my May exhibition has to be completed and framed within two weeks, so we can leave for Dallas and the NAOC. We had a double birthday celebration this evening—the entire House of John plus David. Lee is in Virginia with her mother. I was having such a good time I forgot all about recording the season finale of “Friday Night Lights.” Must have been the Gnarly Head.
Ok, it’s 65. Happy Birthday to you.
Various & Sundry, part forty-nine
Monday, April 9th, 2007— I’ve been trying to think of an appropriate way to tell Ian that I’m proud of his new workout discipline and to offer my encouragement, but I haven’t thought of anything cool or clever to say to him yet. Well, in the meantime, maybe this will do.
— One of the byproducts of March is an almost hypersensitivity to the ingredient stimuli that influence my state of being for each particular day—whether or not I’ve exercised, what I’m currently reading, whether I’m on the uphill or downhill side of a deadline, how much restful sleep I had, what kind of a movie I might have watched the night before, whether I began the day with a Rosary, what style of artwork I’m in the middle of, whether or not my Macintosh is acting up, etc. Being more aware of how these things affect my mood and powers of concentration is good, right? I used to just let each day find its own pitch without much thought to this kind of assessment, but now I know I can counter-balance various influences with music, poetry, prayer, stretching, dietary adjustments, or just a quick floor romp with a Yorkie. Nevertheless, there are still certain kinds of creative tension that have a tendency to throw me off my game, but I’m “getting there.”
— My talk seemed to go well enough yesterday morning that Milton wants to schedule it again as a “rerun.” I don’t think that’s ever happened before, but it might have something to do with only two other people showing up.
— Easter was a long day, but it felt like it flew by much too fast. When I waited to pick up Bruce from the hospital, I sat in the car for a spell, listening to my tape of Heston reading from the New Testament. Bruce was ready to go, but they failed to order the wheelchair transport to the exit. Such a silly regulation. I can stand to be around hospitals, but I don’t like them. As it turned out, Bruce didn’t feel well enough for the ride down to the farm, so he stayed home. We stopped in Junction on the way, to get Terie and Marty, and the four of us spent the holiday afternoon with Clan. I drank too much coffee and ate too much food. Had a very nice discussion with Peat about her job as newspaper editor next year. She’s laying the groundwork this spring, which is smart, and will spend some time in Europe this summer—quite a few Clan Kiddoes are following in my footsteps with travel abroad during student years. I found out that Seth has committed to Bellarmine. Looks like Sam Morgan will go there, too, and he’ll run track. We saw pictures of “Baby Molina,” and I got the data to do numerology charts for her and Torrance. Later in the day, I watched Marty conduct battles on the PC with ROME: Total War, and we played on the PS2 together, too. Our best boxing bout was Sugar Ray R against Sugar Ray L. Marty has moved to primarily sports video games because they require more controller skill, plus he’s getting more interested in the world of sport overall, which is having a bit of a spill-over effect for me. I actually cared who won the green jacket.
Easter Morning Remarks
Saturday, April 7th, 2007I found the mental break I needed by sitting down to write words for our circle of friends who gather at Mack’s cabin for Shared Silence. As you probably know, these talks are known locally as “After Silence.” It’s been four and half years since I did one of these talks. I intend to give due credit to best buddy Mike for many of the facts, observations, and speculations that I’m including. They’re borrowed primarily from an article he wrote last year for Dynamic Chiropractic. Bruce went to the ER this morning with severe pain and is spending the night in a private room. Originally he was going with us to the farm for tomorrow’s holiday with Clan, but now he may not be released soon enough. Hospitals exist in another world of time, and it’s a lot like the weather—no sense in worrying about something over which one has absolutely no control.
Roll the dice; it’s a temporal vise
Thursday, April 5th, 2007My two major volunteer projects of the year seem to have converged in a single work week, and if I can just get through the next twenty-four hours in one piece, I should be able to use the holiday to wind down a bit and refocus on my preparations for the May exhibition.
Oh yeah, it occurs to me that there are now some clients who desire to pay me if I spend some creative time on their behalf.
A wise man would comply.
zap
Tuesday, April 3rd, 2007I wrote an entire entry that was wiped out by a power outage before I thought to save it. I really don’t have much time available for this in the first place, and I have even less to spend doing it twice.
Various & Sundry, part forty-eight
Sunday, April 1st, 2007— Month of March workout totals: Swim-3; Bike-3; Run-4; Lift-6; Yoga-8
— My body isn’t the same one I had ten years ago when I could run a 6:41 mile, but attention to physical fitness is the key to all my other areas of fitness. Lots of people talk to me about their desire to exercise more or to find the time to start again, and I tell them it’s “just a habit like anything else.” Motivation has its place, but for most regular exercisers like me, it’s just something we’ve learned to do by habit. If you don’t exercise, you’ve just learned to do that by habit instead, like the habit of not reading much or not flossing teeth. Replace an unwanted habit with a constructive one—easier said than done. As trite as it may sound, it usually comes down to the familiar Yoda quotation, “Do or do not. There is no try.”
— Naturally, I’m thinking about the March Experiment today. I recognized some time ago that it’s not really about breakthroughs in professional achievement. but rather about the consciousness of continuous personal awareness. That may sound like a particularly selfish pursuit—and it is. On the other hand, I’ve come to believe that control of self-awareness is at the foundation of sensitivity to others. Compassion is rooted in mastery over one’s emotional priorities. Perhaps some individuals are just born with a natural magnanimity. Since I wasn’t, I must take pains to find the necessary inner balance. Therefore—the exercise in March. Yes, I’m now considering making the practice an annual refresher.
— Mombo sends word that Joan, Caitlan, Janet, and Jerome have arrived safely in England, and Brendan met them at the airport. I hope he fixes them up with a blogging station, so we can get the latest news from London. Wow. When I think that it’s been almost 33 years since I was there, my eyes roll back in my head. I can’t imagine what it would be like to visit again. Many things would look the same (the museums and tourist sites), but other places are surely gone forever (those hip shops on King’s Road in Chelsea, etc.). Have fun, guys, and fashion your own memories!
— It’s April, my favorite time of year. Thinking of my family on holiday and having dinner tonight with my household has filled me with gratitude for wonderful things, especially with so many in my hometown mourning the senseless loss of Chiara Levin, a victim of wanton irresponsibility while visiting Boston last week. I am thankful for all the good fortune in my Clan, for my health, for the opportunity to live a creative, meaningful life in a decent community, for an extraordinary partner in all things, and for the Almighty who sustains me. I am truly blessed…