crafty mcgee

self portrait tuesday: personal history week two

This is the way I felt, and probably looked, from my early teens (due to some serious hormone imbalances) through my twenties (a decade when I lost too much way too fast). I was in an almost constant state of existential dread. It was very unpleasant. I am more than relieved to say that I passed through this state quite a while ago. The one upside seems to be that no matter how moody I get these days, I always remember how bad it can really get, so I don't feel so down. This picture is a negative of a self portrait I no longer have the positive for. I had a job in the photo department of a small newspaper, and often played around with the machines in my off time (back in the days before Photoshop).

self portrait tuesday: personal history week 1

For this month's Self Portrait Tuesday  "Personal Reflections" theme, I thought I'd focus on things from my past that have fallen by the wayside, since I've already posted quite a bit on things that haven't changed since I was young. Here's a picture of me in my grandma's kitchen  (long story, another day) on my cousin's pony, Sugar. I couldn't find any pictures of my pony, Champ (he was brown and white and very cute). Yes, I had a pony, and rabbits, and dogs, and cats. I loved animals more than anything in the world. I wanted to be a zoologist - back when I thought that was what a person who worked in a zoo was called (hey, I was six!) Nowadays, I don't dislike animals, but I don't love them anymore. Working with them on a daily basis is close to last on the list of things I'd like to do.

self portrait tuesday: shiny reflection

I must have some crow in me someplace, given my attraction to bright and shiny things. It's one of the reasons I love this season so much. The thing I find interesting about this picture is that it looks like I have a different expression in each ornament. Maybe I should market it as an "amazing psychic tool". Here's what this contraption looks like for real (also my holiday pic of the day). It's from the '40's, and I've got a matched pair! Check out more Self Portrait Tuesday here.

self portrait tuesday: sentimental reflection

Since it's that time of year, I thought I'd post a nostalgic little picture for my first entry in the Self Portrait Tuesday "reflections" theme. This is (obviously) one of the earliest pictures of me, along with my mom and my dear dad, who passed away when I was a teenager. I love everything about this picture - the colors, the shapes, my mom's stylin' glasses....

self portrait tuesday: whoops!

I had a picture and post finished for this week, but apparently it didn't get saved. I can't access my pictures here at work, so I'm stuck. Have a great day!

self portrait tuesday: grower

Growing things is just something I do. It's not even a matter of like or dislike. A big reason I'll never really "make it" as an artist is because growing the ideas is more important to me than the execution. This last weekend I finally started the first garden I've had in seven years. Finally, here's the best thing I've ever grown:
 
My sweet little baby, 19 tomorrow. (She opens her mouth as if to speak, closes it, sighs). Happy birthday, sweetie!

self portrait tuesday: the murky abyss

Amorphous, sometimes human. This would be an appropriate place for a poem, if I wrote poetry. Suffice it to say I've spent too much of my life in this darkness. While I don't run from it, I have respect for it and live my life to keep it in the depths.

self portrait tuesday: sporty!

There's an extreme athlete in me that struggles to get out every once in a while.

Being involved in snow sports is not unusual in the Pacific Northwest. But the year I turned 40 (not long ago), I went on an Outward Bound back country snowboarding expedition. I have also been very involved in whitewater rafting, whitewater kayaking, in-line skating, horseback riding, and probably a few other sports I'm forgetting at the moment.

Being a single mom to a boy who could be a professional athlete certainly encouraged this part of me. But it's hard! So why do I do it?

I've always been this way. There's nothing else that gives me quite the same satisfaction as doing something physically difficult.

self portrait tuesday: playing dress up

 
I'm not being coy when I block out my face, that's the point. Don't look at me, look at the way I'm dressed. It's my persona for a past, or a day, a year or two. Can't you tell by the way that my great grandmother's dress fits that I have Victorian tendencies? In my SCA garb (from long ago, which I couldn't find) it's easy to tell that I'm a girl who's far too romantic and imaginative. But I'm also very cool and trendy, as you can see in the retro threads that I wore for years. Here's one more:

My old dancing/party shoes. I've got all sorts of interesting outfits that go with these, and you could probably think up a few of your own. I was going to say that I'd outgrown all of these costumes, but that's not exactly true. It's more like I've grown beyond the need to prove everything about myself externally.

self portrait tuesday: ...but what I'd really like to do is direct...

*or cinematography, or editing.  I adore film. Ever since my mom took me to see A Hard Day's Night when I graduated from kindergarten, I've been hooked. I'm a total film geek. You know how most people listen to music when they work? I watch (or listen) to movies. While I don't regret entering the graphic arts - it's a good fit for me - film editing is definitely my Career That Got Away.  How are other SPT'ers "Exploring Their Identity"? Check here.

For the 99% of you who aren't film fanatics, the little guy is legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa.