Category: letterpress
When Being Bold Doesn’t Come Easily
Being a badass is not the advice you necessarily want to give to a son or daughter.
Yet, I wish I’d been told this when I was growing up. Actually, I equate being a badass with not caring so much what others think of you, standing up for yourself.
I’ve struggled with this my entire life. It’s not an easy trait to change. So, as I often do, I print what I need to see. I’m also experimenting with watercolor washes under the text.
Does it get your attention?
Age, Art, and Learning
The other day I was dreaming about ways to letterpress print on a textured surface. I am getting tired of plain white backgrounds.
Then, I watched a few videos, took some notes, updated photos in the Etsy shop, and answered emails about our upcoming Write-On letter writing workshop at Kickshaws.
But wait. I will be 66 soon. Why am I still trying to run a business? Why am I still trying to build community? Shouldn’t I be relaxing in retirement?
Actually, I do relax. With my mom in town, life has changed. But I find myself drawn back to connections.
Somewhere around 1988 or 90, I bought my first computer and hooked it to the internet as soon as I could figure out how to do that. Suddenly I could learn anywhere, and I could share what I was learning with others.
I’ve always been fascinated by entrepreneurship. But more than that, fascinated by what makes people connect. I am inspired by Seth Godin, or books by Simon Sinek or Jason Fried
The Heath brothers and Daniel Pink challenged my way of thinking about ideas, Clayton M. Christensen on disruption… well, you see where I’m going. I love to learn (and to think about how we learn).
Brene Brown came into my life about ten years ago, and recently as I’ve thought about storytelling, Bernadette Jiwa.
It is never too late to learn. To create. To do anything.
Why stop now? I can’t imagine a better retirement. How lucky I am.
Poetry and Nature
The world is too much with us, said William Wordsworth. Some days this poem resonates clearly, as depressing as it is.
But recognizing this, I can soon muddle around in the emotions and come out the other side. I don’t need to stay there. And, as Wordsworth found, getting outside in nature helps. The sun on my face, the crisp air.
Focus on this day, this moment. It gets better.
Howling
If you’re like me, you try to hold everything together. Were you raised like I was with the saying, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all?”
I’ve discovered the last few years I need to stop being a stoic. When a friend of mine at camp mentioned her father’s favorite line, I asked if I could print it. The card now sits in one of my wooden stands on my mantel where it reminds me that it’s ok to cry, to be unhappy, or yes, to howl.
Once the emotions pour out, I am a new woman.