Wrecking in Swamp Lands

As the thunderstorms shake the earth, I ponder on why I love storms so much. They crackle with passion and release. Release of tension. The bursting of saturation. The rainbow of peace.

I have been absent from my blog, as I have reached my own saturation point. Swamped with duties, and living in a haze of tiredness. Trying to rest as much as possible to counterbalance the stress.

I have been in self-preservation mode.

I have missed so many of the amazing events in the blogosphere, but most importantly, I have missed each and every one of you. I have some serious catching up to do, and come Thursday, I will be buzzing around your blogs, taking in the honey of your words, and leaving some gifts of words and wishes.

In my wrecking journey, I have done little. My mental energy was used up in the everyday, and my creativity has been used to survive this.

But I have done some wrecking. Nothing earth shattering. But here it is none-the-less.

(click on images to enlarge)

I was on the phone for what seemed like hours this week with banks and other companies I do business with. Plenty of opportunity to doodle! And where better to doodle than in WTJ! :)



I took some of my carrot sticks that I was snacking on while watching So You Think You Can Dance and dipped them in ink, making these drawings. Then dipping them in watercolor. I giggled a lot through this process, making sure I separated the drawing carrots from the munching carrots. A mix-up would have been yucky!



Finally, in much need of some energy, I wrote myself some positive thoughts to carry me through the last stages of summer school. The color that seeped onto these pages from others, makes these messages even happier.

To see what the others in the marvelous Wrecking Crew have been up to go to the magnificent Jamie Ridler's Next Chapter Book Club here !

I hope you are all doing well, and I will be back soon to celebrate your achievements, marvel over your talents, commiserate with your frustrations and rejoice in the blogosphere that has brought all of us together! :)

Interview This Wrecker!

What a week! It has been a challenge getting through it, and I am feeling the effects.
I'm a bit under the weather, which is a major signal to slow down.

But before I get into all that... I have an exciting announcement to make!

Connie from Dirty Footprints Studio is interviewing me live on air tomorrow at 3 pm Eastern!
So, if you have the time and want to listen in or call in, join the fun!
The link is posted on her blog.
If you don't know Connie,
you should check out her deliciously creative,
amazingly energetic and
abundantly inspiring blog!

Now on to the wreckage.

This week I was caught in the rain without an umbrella.
So what did I use to cover my head?
The journal of course!

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My camera is disappointing, or it might be the user, so it's difficult to see the water drops.
The journal was drenched.... And now it looks like.....


THIS!
It can't and won't close. And it's water logged, but I still love my little journal!
I took some time to paint in it and have some fun, to balance out the heavy work week.


Evidence of my creative endeavors on this test page!
I am going to glue this paper towel I used to clean my water color pens.
But there's more!



I took some veggies that were wilting in my fridge, and I made some stamps!
Pepper and carrot impressions!
But I couldn't leave it at that! NO!


I wanted to paint it. Give it some color! FUN! :)


I took a peaceful moment to glue a page from a magazine.
It's actually two pages that I turned into a collage.
There are some powerful messages here! :)


I embellished my office supply page with things I found in my classroom desk.


I made a sign!
Life is infinite possibilities.
Enough so that we each can live our own way.
And isn't that amazing?

Last but not least, I am including a photo of the page I sent to Kara, aka Mother Henna!

This page was inspired by the workshop that Kara lead entitled "Find Your Own Hero".
I fell horribly behind and will be picking it up again when I am on vacay in 11 days!
I digress.

This is my Super Hero!
And who better to give it to than the woman who inspired the journey!
Thank you Kara!

If you have not checked out her blog, please visit!
Not only is her art and words infinitely touching, blessedly real, and remarkably inspiring,
she runs some juicy workshops!

My Super Hero.

That's it for week 7 for me!
Check out other wreckage, on our wonderful Guru, Jamie Ridler's blog, here!

Jamie a driving FORCE of creativity, leadership, and ongoing inspiration. I consider myself so lucky and privileged to have crossed paths with her. When I am in her presence or reading her thoughts, I feel a light emanating from her. A light that envelopes the world.

Jamie, if you're reading this, I thank you from the bottom of my being! Blessed be. :)

Baby Got Wreck

(click photos to enlarge)

It was a beautiful Saturday morning! What better time to walk over to my neighborhood art supply store for some goodies? I had me a journal to wreck and some artistic experimentation to do! I always feel like a kid when I walk into art supply stores. The increasing garbage on our streets couldn't even deflate my exhilaration!

I got glitter glue, water color paint, and water color pens... I also got me a coffee! This is how my WTJ Art picnic for one began!

Ready for the results? teehee!

I poked a hole in the cover where I scratched a heart on it and sewed the heart on the cover. I painted the heart red of course! I embellished it with a smiley face button and made this bead bookmark which I have had to reinforce since. It was a big thrill just popping a hole in the cover of a book. Intentionally!

And since I was poking holes, I grabbed the first few pages and drilled holes in them, then laced an amber necklace I made through them.



Then I colored! I got the watercolors to work! I just splattered color with abandon, with no real intention then painted patterns. I added some stars that I give students and rocked the coloring page! :)

I moved onto the sticky page, dripping honey and sticking gum on it. I added some glitter glue for effect! Then I started throwing random things on there like tissue paper and string. To my delight, a lady formed with the instruction bubble for her head wearing a dress with a train, a bustle and a bouquet. See her?

I went back to the thick/thin line page! I am finding I don't like blank pages any more. LOL! So I reinforced the lines and added a little Picasso-esque scribble. Then I splattered one side with color. I will be painting both sides! :)

Before Father's Day, I found this in the newspaper and cut it out as a homage to my daddy. So I added some watercolor to the page. I kind of like the effect. :)

I wrote and drew with my left hand...

The writing was harder than the drawing for some reason.

I tossed cherries at the target! The squishy ones I didn't want to eat!

I got out the markers and scribbled wildly!

Then I got my nail polish out! Dun dun dun!

Drip! Drip! Drip! (I was so excited the pic is blurry! hehe)

SMOOSH! :)
I love the shiny effect. :)

And what's an artistic picnic without some sewing materials? I had some mending to do, so why not? Whoop!

So I added some tassels and beads! And tried my hand again with my water color pens!

Last but not least I sent off my swap page to Kara aka Mother Henna
WHOOP!
I will be posting it next week when hopefully Kara has received it! :)
~~~~~~~~~~~~
This whole experience has popped open so many areas in my life.
I decided to strip my coffee table and repaint it. It's all blotchy and scratched. Instead of getting rid of it, I decided to revamp it. Why not?
I'm totally overhauling my garden. Chopping, unearthing, simplifying.

And that, my friends, is just the beginning!

For more Adventures in Wrecking, please visit Jamie Ridler's Next Chapter !

Portrait of a Wrecked Journal

I was a bad girl!

So this week at Wreck Camp...

I wrote a word over and over...
And made it fun because I didn't want to feel like I was in detention.

I was the "bad" student being defiant and writing this all over the board.
"I will continue to doodle in my book."

So THERE! :)

I ripped a page UP into shreds and then made bows with them. Pretty. Pretty.

I carelessly and gleefully stapled a page together... and doodled all over it. :)

I refused to write negative comments, but drew a picture and pointed to all my body faults.

Then blotted them out!

I have had enough of negativity. It tastes nasty and has no nutritional value.

Then, I took a pair of scissors and with a wicked grin CUT several pages!

Then, in total defiance while giggling merrily, I took a black marker and let it go all over this page while I jumped for joy!

Want to see what my fellow Wreck Camp members are up to?
Go to our Camp Councilor, Jamie Ridler's Next Chapter blog here and find out! Weeeee!

Write Wrecking

Yes. It's week 4 of Jamie Ridler's Blogging Book Club for Wreck This Journal! Mine is looking more battered, as you can see.

This week I focused on writing. Mine. Others'. Random shizz.

One thing that this journey is helping me to unearth, is my camera. I'm starting to use it more. My photos are by no means artistic, but I am beginning to document my life in photos not just in wrecking the journal.

In this week's video, Jamie touches upon the whole comparison issue. Getting hung up on what others are doing in comparison to what we are doing can be a huge stumbling block. I can honestly say that though I am in awe of people's amazing feats of wrecking andtheir wonderful videos, I am plugging away at mine at my own pace and in my own way. There is no right way.

This week, I mostly took the write way. :)

I got my students to draw, or write on the public page.

And it carried onto the lint page... I didn't care! SO be it :)
Their messages are too heartwarming to cover in lint. Well, maybe some strategic lint... ;)

I documented the tearing up and tossing of the page which opened up to the four letter word page. I wrote "glow" "body" "love". Don't judge! :)

This is my half- completed office materials page...

With a little hidden message :)

I wrote my internal monologue while I treated myself to a mani-pedi. :)

And of course, since it was the last week of school that was filled with meetings and "professional development" it provided me with plenty of opportunities to document a boring event. Hahaha!

The bottom line? I'm having fun with it. And that's what it's all about.
Right?
:)

Sweet Wreckage!

It's week three of Jamie Ridler's Next Chapter Book Club of Wreck This Journal, and I can already see we are a whole new group of people!

The fun is permeating this wrecking crew and gleeful, wicked laughter can be heard worldwide. It's not only the sweet sensation of throwing taboo out the window along with the journal, it's incredibly exhilarating to watch what devastation my fellow bloggers are up to!

Here's what my journal is looking like this week.

It can't stay closed. Its cover is bend and the spine barely holding on. Of course it looks pristine compared to others' journals but I'm trying to do the internal wrecking first before I go for the gusto! :)

I marked it though :)

I chewed on it! More chewing will ensue... :)

I poked holes!

I made ugly lines!

I scratched it!







I drew circles...

I burned it!

I spilled coffee all over it! You can see the ashes from the burning stuck to this page!
And the eye peeking out from the burned page :)
The spillage on the right reminds me of a heart! Whoop :)

I drew ugly things in it :)

I stapled white things in it, purposely not making it neat :)

I defied the rules!

And last but not least...

I embellished it! :)

If you haven't joined, what are you waiting for? It's never too late :)