“Remember: you're annoying, too.”

& other topics

Replace with Balance, 2023, mixed media on canvas, 60x54"

Getting lost in the process

One of my intentions for 2023 is to let Jenny Pennywood (the textile designer) & Jen Garrido (the painter) start to talk to one another more, as opposed to turning their backs on one another, because I am both. So in that spirit, here's a look at a recent piece & a bit about my process.

Lately while painting, my head goes like this: just repeat that shape. Then, I observe what comes next. Right now, I want my work to be about absolutely nothing. Nothing but shapes, colors, composition, rhythm, more colors and layering. All in repetition.

I'm tired of exhausting myself with thoughts about what my work should or shouldn't be. My practice is about giving myself permission to take myself out of the narrative and simply be with what's there. And if I can use my love of pattern-based repetition as a practice that allows that to flow through me, maybe I can drop the internal dialogue, let go of the control and just do the thing I love to do.

Sobriety, my far out fantasy

I’m always fantasizing about becoming sober,¹ so naturally, I just read Quit Like A Woman by Holly Whitaker.

¹Someone very close to me is currently taking a long and very thoughtful pause from drinking & I admire it. I don't have a drinking problem (but it's ok if you think I do after reading this), I just love fantasizing about how healthy and wonderful I would be if I didn't drink.

Last night, I had a little bit more than half a bottle of wine and it was worth it. In fact, I’m the kind of person who drinks wine out of a Yeti Tumbler. With ice.

For this topic, my brand person asked me what kind of wine I've been drinking lately. I asked her to link something nice from Flowers Vineyards & Winery for the newsletter, but the real answer is: anything white or Chardonnay from BevMo’s $0.05 wine sale (buy one, get the other bottle for $0.05).

Anyways, the book was great, but the dream remains a dream for now.

READ IT

I'm 48 & I'm still irregular

I just got my period. It’s only been 18 days since my last one. It’s called perimenopause and it’s f%cking stupid. My doctor recommends I get an IUD to soften the blows of irregularity. I'm unsure about it.

Speaking of periods, it always feels good to cry, so I just re-listened to Krista Tippett’s conversation with John O’Donohue for the third time. I just love it.

LISTEN: On Being, The Inner Landscape of Beauty