Speed of Life

Patience by Finijo 2009

The older I get, the more I know this to be true, life (for me) is speeding up. I try to stop and smell the roses, but it is longer and longer between sniffs. I remember days when I was a kid that seemed like they went on forever. Summers were infinitely long, so long that we had time to get bored, which made us excited that school would be starting soon. Now I don't have time to be bored. I don't seem to have time between one Christmas, birthday, holiday, etc...to plan for the next. It has been years since I was excited about the holidays and felt like I truly enjoyed them. They just seem to be so much work for so little benefit, that I find myself exhausted and stressed out when they are over. This feeling is not just at home, but also at work. It feels lately that I don't have time between clients, projects, or audits at work to breathe, and I find myself inhaling deeply as I leave the office each day. Even the things I enjoy like reading and painting have become laborious. I don't seem to have time to read books anymore and since I have started working at my art in the last year, it has been fun, but also made me feel stressed by deadlines. Sometimes I wonder if it is worth it, and I am relieved to know that most of the time it is.

I would like to finish out this year with more of my home and work projects done or at least up to date, and start next year with more vigor than I feel like I have at the moment. I am taking October off from doing any art shows. I will attend, but don't want to feel stressed about being in the show. I want to reorganize my back room and turn it into a functional studio for me to paint in. I also want to clean out my closets and get rid of half of what is hanging in them. I want to break free of stuff and try to slow down. I think my goal over the next few weeks will be to slow down and hopefully slow down my speed of life and enjoy the events, people, and things that make me happy.

Why I Haven't Blogged At All This Year

I think I have had blogger's block for about two years, but I really haven't even tried to post anything in 2012. Facebook and art have taken over my life. This is both positive and negative, I suppose. I looked back over my most recent (yeah, I know there is nothing recent) posts and realized that I never even blogged my trip to France, and that was truly blog worthy. I spent 10 days in Lyon with a good friend and her two children July a year ago and even had my birthday in France, which was quite memorable for me. It was a beautiful city and a year later, I often wake up from dreams of returning.

Floral Sculpture by the Rhone River in Lyon 

I've had a couple of interesting trips for work since my last post, as well. I went to Boston in June of 2011 and LOVE that city. Everything about that city appealed to me and I liked the people I met, as well. Beautiful art and architecture and the city just felt very much "alive." I liked the people, the architecture, and the food. 

Boston Cathedral Detail by Finijo

I also went to Minneapolis in May of this year and it was quite an experience. It was a beautiful city, but I have never visited a city before and seen so much crime in one visit. I actually had to give a statement to police about a theft I witnessed while eating dinner at an outside table at a very nice restaurant. Warning: Do not leave your iPhone sitting on the table when you eat on a patio, a thug is likely to reach over the fence and steal it. In this case, it was two thugs who did their maneuver simultaneously.

Spoonbridge and Cherry by Finijo 

The last couple of year has also been a very creative one for me. I have begun to show my art and have participated in about 8 shows over the last year. I have several more coming over the next six months and I also opened an Etsy store (http://www.etsy.com/shop/Finijo )and I have sold a few pieces, as well. I am starting to do assemblage art, which feels like a good fit, so that is exciting for me. I never really had a desire to show my art publicly (real time, not on line) before now and I am surprised at how much I am enjoying it and how well it is being received.

Ode to JZ (assemblage box) by Finijo

After this month, I hope to get myself organized and set my goals for 2013. So much to do, so little time. I want to be in at least one show at the Lawndale Art Center next year, I would like to curate a show, and I would like to be more productive with my free time, which means that I could spend my time blogging more of what I see and do. I really have missed my blogging time, because it's that pensive time when I get to process my thoughts and file away the experiences I've had and prepare for the new ones at hand. I'm crossing my fingers that I keep this promise to myself.

The Ringlebens

These are two of the people who are responsible for me being here, John and Rosie Ringleben. Rosie's full name is reported to be Katrina (or Kathrina) Rosina Magdalena Von Hohenstein. They immigrated from Germany in the 1840's and they are my great-great-great-grandparents on my maternal grandmother's side of the family.

My brother views genealogy as a pastime for people who are stuck in the past. I think that the more you know about your past, the better you will understand your present. It is just a tool to gain insight. The past fascinates me, but I don't choose to live there.

We believed that we could change ourselves
The past could be undone
But we carry on our backs the burden
Time always reveals
The lonely light of morning
The wound that would not heal

Sarah McLachlan

I like the analogy of our bodies as clothes we shed from one life to the next. I think we know more about our past "wardrobe" when we are children, but as we age/mature, we lose or suppress the memory. Sometimes it's difficult to articulate the feeling of it all for fear of sounding like a nut. I have been working on the family genealogy for many years (off and on), so I have been feeling very "connected" to the past while living in the present and raising the future (so to speak). I feel there is a life thread that connects all souls. I guess my analogy would be that souls are energy (like electricity), and they run like current through a universal grid. Instead of being strictly linear, the grid is dimensional with time and form dimensions. The forms would be dead, alive, human, not human, ghost. I don't know any of this to be true, but it is how I sense that the universe works. It is the personal lens I choose to see through.

Stick 'Em Up Sneak Peek

Alex Luster and Tony Reyes photo by Hector Luna

I went to the Sneak Peek of Stick 'Em Up! at the River Oaks tonight with Marilyn, Connor, and Kusa. It was GREAT! Alex 'Pr!mo' Luster and Tony Reyes did Houston street artists proud, while also showing the opposition (city government and law enforcement officials) in a fair light. Anyone who knows me is aware that I have been documenting Houston's street art for years now, but this documentary goes beyond the images and introduces Houston to some of the artists (Give Up, Eyesore, and Dual, to name a few). It is a surprising (and surprisingly funny) introduction. The artists are very aware that what they are doing is illegal, but it is fascinating to hear their reasons for being compelled to continue to share their art in this manner. Stick 'Em Up! is heading to the film festival circuit now and I am hoping to see it play at the new Sundance Theater in downtown Houston when it opens. This "sneak peek," as Alex and Tony call it, was the testing of the waters for the film. After the overwhelming positive response in the theater, I can't help but believe that this film will be opening some doors for both Alex and Tony in the very near future. When you get the chance, see this film. Then take a good look around Houston and know that there are some very hard working artists trying to leave their mark (albeit temporary) on Houston.

Randomness

Black and White by Finijo

I am in that strange place that I find myself occupying on quiet weekend mornings when Connor and Marilyn are still asleep. I have the back door open (gates up for the cats) and I'm listening to Sirius Coffee House, so the mood is mellow. I hung mosquito netting to prevent the squirrels from getting my tomatoes this year, but I haven't secured it yet and the breeze is blowing it in the most beautifully fluid way. I turned to my blog for the first time in weeks and realized that I have many entries started, but not finished. I posted a few of them and will likely post some others, but think I need to start fresh and just start entering things as they happen. I have been hung up on the order of things lately, but that OCD behavior is stopping my flow altogether. I am in a pensive place and thinking about my mortality and my future. I know they are mutually exclusive right up to the point of their intersection. I wonder if my ducks are in a row, if my papers are in one place, my passwords accessible. I wonder a lot of things this morning as I drift in and out of hopeful and borderline morose thoughts. I am neither happy, nor sad, but somehow both. Nothing is linear for me today, so I will bring out some of the posts I never finished and get them off the shelf without actually working on them. In spite of errors in my posts, I try to be a perfectionist when I post and that takes time I don't feel like I have this morning. This is my ode to randomness - enjoy.

Patience (2007) by Finijo

11/28/07 - "The last time I was really productive artistically, was about 13 years ago. At that time I gave up my creative space for a good cause, Connor and Marilyn. I finally settled on a space in the house where I can paint, although it has taken me over a year to figure it out. To be honest, I didn't put much thought into it until recently, but I'm glad now that I have a spot. Not that I am expecting a huge amount of production, but at least it is a place that I can keep set up for when the mood strikes. I have been slowly easing back into the idea of painting again and to be honest, it's a little daunting to go back to it after all this time. Still, I am glad I have a place to work again."

Vibrant Exuberance (2005) by Finijo

2005 - One of the saddest sights you will ever see is an aging stoner chic that passed her prime in the late 70's/early 80's. You can usually spot them, because they have a tendency to cause a stir wherever they go. They have an Anna Nichole Smith quality to their behavior, a vapid coquettism that is strangely surreal. It's like they are simultaneously experiencing a hang over, a head rush and the Rapture. They exude the scent of patchouli and cigarettes and they have raspy voices from the smoking and hard partying they have done for the last 20+ years. They are long past getting by on "cute," but they persist in flirting their way through life, because it worked so well on the security guard at the Stones concert in 1978. With toothless grins, they flash their weathered chests expecting an ovation. It is uncomfortable to watch, but like a living train wreck, you can't look away.

This thought came to me after seeing a woman in the building where I worked at the time. She was making a comi-tragic scene that reminded me of my older sister, Linda. Beautiful Victim (1974) by Gottfried Helwein

No Child Left Behind is a load of horse shit. It's a Texas-sized lie started in Houston by Dr. Rod Paige and perpetuated by George W. Bush, because he apparently never met a lie he could pass up.

This random rage came to me after listening to George W. Bush spout off about the improvements he planned to make to our educational system. It doesn't matter if it was term one or term two - both were nightmares we havenot quite awakened from.

Leadbelly

Huddie Leadbetter was the given name of the blues icon, Leadbelly. He had a voice like gravel and pain...

Please, Governor Neff, Be good 'n' kind
Have mercy on my great long time...
I don't see to save my soul
If I don't get a pardon, try me on a parole...
If I had you, Governor Neff, like you got me
I'd wake up in the mornin' and I'd set you free

This post had to have been started in 1995 around the time of my Napster addiction. I reveled in music I could not hear any other way. I don't care what anyone says, mp3's and Napster was the best thing that could have happened to music at that time. It allowed so many of us to indulge ourselves in out of print and obscure music of the past and new music that otherwise would not have had an avenue for release.

QUOTES FROM THE DEAD

ca. 1995 - At lunch today, I was scrolling through other blogs and I came across one in which the author posted a favorite quote from his grandmother. This is it: Man was given imagination to compensate for what he is not,And a sense of humor to console him for what he is.-Neil Stockman's Letter. It made me laugh out loud, so I stole it for my blog. It did make me think of some of the favorite quotes and sayings from my family.

You'd have had a rosewood casket, if you'd just kept your mouth shut. - Grandma

It's the government, Stupid. - Linda

Damn Communist government. - Linda

Our sister was a wonderfully eccentric woman with some definite, albeit odd (and sometimes humorous) ideas that vacillated between paranoia and reality. I miss her and Grandma so much, still. Grandma's quote has a story that goes along with it, but I will leave it to your imagination.

I still have about 20 more posts that I may throw out here randomly the next time I feel like cleaning house.

London - Day 1

Sunrise Over London by Finijo

I arrived at Heathrow as the sun came up. After 18 long hours, I finally reached my destination via Calgary. Even though it was a long trip, I enjoyed every bit of it thoroughly. From the five hours spent in the Calgary airport, to the in flight movies, to my seat next to the toilet on the plane. Every minute of my trip was an adventure. London Ghosts by Finijo

From Heathrow, I took the Underground Picadilly Line to Russell Square, I walked a couple of blocks to my hotel, the Tavistock in Bloomsbury. It was the perfect location, near the British Museum and everything seemed to be just a quick bus/metro ride or walk from Tavistock Square. After a brisk walk on my first crisp night in London, Andy and I had a lovely dinner at Cosmoba.

Street Art - Ack and Weah

Weah at Dusk (and Sober?) by Finijo

I got out and took some shots of street art around Montrose and on Almeda Rd. at X L Parts. I love that building because it is covered with a variety of artists' work. There are at least 10 artists who have adorned this building with their talent.

Ack! at Dusk by Finijo

I love the colors and it is especially vibrant at dusk and dawn. The trick is getting the shot before the sun goes down. Ack's work is distinct, colorful, and full of humor. Once you are introduced to his characters, you will always recognize a work by Ack. Documenting street art in Houston is one of my favorite things to do - seriously. There is so much happening all the time.

Two Against One by Finijo

If you open your eyes and really look at Houston, you will see that there is an incredibly vibrant art movement afoot. I am always disappointed when people say, "Yeah, I kind of saw it, but I didn't really look at it," when I am describing a new piece I have come across.

Weah's Fire Breather by Finijo

This piece by Weah (like most of his work) is a wonderfully complex figure comprised of organic and geometric shapes. I can see both an Asian and the Aztec influence and it is positively stunning to me.

Weah vs. Ack by Finijo

It's overexposed, but you can see the full work here. Where else do you find a collaborative piece in such disparate styles? I think the juxtaposition of work by these two artists is a wonderful visual analogy of Houston. There is beauty and humor in the mix and I feel very lucky to be in Houston while the artistic energy is flowing so freely. I can't imagine what Houston would be like if it stops.

Eyecon by Eyesore

Eyecon in Orange and Blue by Eyesore

For Karim's birthday, I contacted Eyesore and asked him if he would be willing to do a commissioned piece. He said he would and the result is magnificent. It was a great experience meeting the artist and his daughter. Karim LOVES the finished product and now owns his first piece of original art.

Mixed Media Workshop

Falling In Love With Someone by Finijo

I went to the Mixed Media Workshop at Mariposa Studio this afternoon and the photo above shows what I churned out in about 2 hours. I enjoyed the workshop and Jodie and David Gonzales inspire creativity. Lately, I have been having trouble initiating projects at home, but going to the workshops at Mariposa seems to have jump started my creative juices. I hope some of you decide to join me at Mariposa, because the experience is great for beginners and experienced artists alike. The next workshop is another Chagall and Chardonnay, this Thursday, August 26th.

The piece includes silk flowers, scrap book paper, silver leaf, circuitry from a defunct keyboard, produce netting, a bug trapped in wax from Hurricane Ike, and bees wax.

Symbol

I saw this symbol on Yahoo News today and the title of the article was: Do You Know What This Symbol Means? It was immediately clear to me that this is the symbol for "Your Ass Is Getting Fat." The article mentioned that the symbol is "idiot proof," so I read further and found that it is , in fact, the warning symbol for low tire pressure. I am an idiot :(

All My Friends Are Superheroes

I just finished reading All My Friends are Superheroes by Andrew Kaufman this morning. I just started reading it last night. It is a very short book, 108 pages, and it is wonderful. Kaufman wrote a quirky, funny little book. It is also romantic and a little sad. I would love to see the characters of the book populate a TV series or a series of movies. It wouldn't be like Iron Man or Batman, because the superheroes are all fairly average people who have discovered the thing about them that makes them extraordinary. For some it is a blessing, for others a curse, and for the reader, it is a couple of hours of reading joy.

Response from ADL

Tolerance Bridge - Houston, Texas

Fri, August 13, 2010 10:06:22 PM

Re: Your inquiry regarding ADL position on Islamic Community Center at Ground Zero
From: Karen West View Contact
To: "Bernstein, Jodi"
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Ms. Bernstein,

I appreciate your response to my inquiry. Before writing my message to the ADL, I read the ADL's complete original statement. I read it again when you sent me the link and must say, while I understand the ADL's position on the subject, I am not in agreement for the reasons that I previously stated.

Again, I do appreciate that you took the time respond.

Karen West

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: "Bernstein, Jodi"
To: finijo@yahoo.com
Sent: Tue, August 10, 2010 10:56:18 AM
Subject: Your inquiry regarding ADL position on Islamic Community Center at Ground Zero

Dear Ms. West:

On behalf of the Southwest Region of the Anti-Defamation League, thank you for your input regarding ADL’s position on the proposed Islamic Community Center near Ground Zero. As you may have heard, the New York City Landmark Preservation Commission has determined not to designate the site as a landmark, clearing the way for the proposed Islamic Community Center is to be built. In light of this development, it is important for the community – and the extended community of interested parties around the country -- to move forward in a positive way.

If you have not yet read ADL’s full position, we encourage you to read it and the other articles below.

The complete original ADL statement.

Abraham Foxman’s Huffington Post article, The Mosque at Ground Zero

A Wall Street Journal article entitled “WTC Mosque, Meet the Auschwitz Nuns; Pope John Paul offers a model of tolerance for a heated controversy.”

We hope you will continue to keep abreast of ADL news, programs and services at the national website, www.adl.org. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.

Jodi Bernstein
Senior Associate Director
Anti-Defamation League - Southwest Region
4635 Southwest Freeway, Suite 400
Houston, TX 77027
Ph. 713-627-3490 Ext. 124
Fax 713-627-2011
jodi.bernstein@adl.org

Anti-Defamation League Errs

I am absolutely mortified by the stance the ADL has taken against the building of the Islamic cultural center near ground zero in New York City. If ever there was a way to show the terrorists who perpetrated the horror of 9/11, it would be to stand up proudly and show them that we will not only rebuild, but we will do so with tolerance and love. There is no other weapon that will defeat the hate that spawns terrorism - period. After 10 years of fighting, bloodshed, and loss of life, we must face that taking arms will not solve the problem of terrorism. It is time we tried something different, something radical - the use of ideas, tolerance, and understanding.

Blocking the Islamic cultural center is short sighted at the very least, but it is at it's essence an act of religious intolerance. Opposition to the Islamic cultural center is as ludicrous as opposition to a Catholic church near the memorial at the site of the Murrah Federal Building bombing by Timothy McVeigh, based on his Catholic upbringing. Fear is not the way forward, it is the way to stay mired in an untenable position.

Because I cannot put it better myself I am quoting Fareed Zakaria in the article in Newsweek:

The ADL’s mission statement says it seeks “to put an end forever to unjust and
unfair discrimination against and ridicule of any sect or body of citizens.” But
Abraham Foxman, the head of the ADL, explained that we must all respect the
feelings of the 9/11 families, even if they are prejudiced feelings. “Their
anguish entitles them to positions that others would categorize as irrational or
bigoted,” he said. First, the 9/11 families have mixed views on this mosque.
There were, after all, dozens of Muslims killed at the World Trade Center. Do
their feelings count? But more important, does Foxman believe that bigotry is OK
if people think they’re victims? Does the anguish of Palestinians, then, entitle
them to be anti-Semitic?

What I can (and did) do is to contact the ADL and voice my disappointment in the shameful position they took when they put aside the mission of their organization to pander to fear and hatred. I am not unsympathetic to the pain that 9/11 caused the families, but I do not agree with their stance on this issue. This is the message I sent the ADL:

My father is Jewish and my mother is Catholic. I have been Buddhist for more
than 20 years. In my life and in my home I practice religious tolerance and I
have believed my whole life that the ADL stood for the principles that I was
raised with and that this country was founded on. The stance taken by the ADL
against the building of the Islamic cultural center in New York is wrong. It is
an example of fear based religious intolerance, which I have always believed the
ADL to be fighting. Shame on the ADL for not practicing as it has preached. I
truly hope that this decision will be rectified.

Fareed Zakaria returned both the plaque and the $10,000 honorarium he received from the ADL in 2005 when he was awarded the Hubert H. Humphrey First Amendment Freedoms Prize. Zakaria's return of the award and the money will likely subject him to ridicule and possibly cost him professionally and financially, but he used his First Amendment right to speak his conscience in a very public way. In my small way, I voice my solidarity.

Crowded House Show

This is video that I shot of Neil Finn singing Private Universe at the fantastic Crowded House show at Stubbs in Austin, Texas. Marilyn and I got to meet Neil Finn and even got a photo with him. Then we got to see the band in action and were enthralled with the show. This was Marilyn's first time seeing them live, but I was lucky enough to see them in 1991 when they played Houston. We braved the heat of a sultry August night in Austin and sweat buckets for the wonderful experience of seeing Neil Finn and Crowded House. I would do it again, given the chance.

Neil Finn has been the source of tears twice in my life. The first was on my 16th birthday when I wept silently on an air plane as I was headed to Little Rock to see family and lamented the fact that I would miss the Split Enz show at Numbers that night. The second time I cried was 1996 when I was freshly out of the hospital after being diagnosed with Lupus and heard the news that Crowded House had disbanded. It just made me very sad to think that I would not have the opportunity to see them live again. They were so very good during this show that I was nothing but a grinning fool from the moment we snapped the photo with Neil Finn till I fell asleep that night back at the hotel room.

The Austin Motel

Polkadot Surprise Room 145 by Finijo

We stayed at the Austin Motel when we came to Austin for the Crowded House show at Stubbs. It is truly a funky and strange hotel. Each room is different and each one has a theme. We stayed in the Polkadot Surprise room with wall paper from 1969. The beds had odd turquoise chenille bed spreads and there were multicolored dingle berries on the terry cloth rugs at the foot of each bed.

Yellow Flowers by Finijo

There was original art in the room that was surely purchased at a yard sale or second hand shop, but it added to the, ahem...ambiance. Each and every room is different and spectacularly kitsch. We were relieved to find that the beds were comfortable and welcome after sweating ourselves silly at Stubbs.

Polkadot Bathroom by Finijo

The bathroom is very old fashioned and the towels are the opposite of luxurious, but we truly enjoyed it. The whole place as a very Austin feel to it. Eclectic and leaning towards hippie-esque. You start to get the vibe when you enter the office to check in and smell incense as you peruse the collection of chachkies and odd collectibles that serve as interior design.

Blue Impressionism by Finijo

Marilyn and I both agreed that we would reframe the art in the room and hang it. This painting was the hands down favorite. No telling who the artist is, but we would like to thank him/her for making us smile. The motel set the mood for our visit to Austin and at $100.00 even (they do not accept discounts), we feel like we got our money's worth.

Painted Wood by Finijo

Notice the painted wood dresser and desk resting on the saltillo tile. While you are at it, don't miss the TV from the 1990's and the polkadot tin can trash can. We would definitely stay at the Austin Motel again in the future, but we are thinking that we will spring for one of the suites that overlook the hotel pool next time. Very cool vibe and very nice employees - we enjoyed our stay here.