This week I started a bit early. Friday, for my morning reading, I began Sargent’s Women by Donna M. Lucey. I turned on my propane heater, which doesn’t sound like much, but it feels like I’m in front of a fire, and that’s all that really matters. Curled up in my chair with a certain little Lola on my lap and read the morning away. There may or may not have been a box of “MINT Fudge Enrobed Cookies” at hand. I can’t resist a cookie with the word enrobed in its name. I had music on, but after Beasley’s afternoon walk, I turned it off and enjoyed the peaceful quiet while I read about people like, the guy who built Colorado Springs and a woman artist who lived in a horse drawn RV caravan.
Sometimes I get so jealous of the artists in Paris who all co-mingled and had awesome dinners together. Like this moment in time that actually happened:
After seeing Ellen Terry, a famous actress of the time, in an amazing costume for a play and with her “magenta hair,” “Sargent knew that he had to paint her in full costume. It took some arm-twisting, but Terry finally relented and arrived by carriage to Sargent’s Tite Street studio one soggy morning. (Across the road, Oscar Wilde was riveted as he looked out his library window to witness ‘the vision of Lady Macbeth in full regalia magnificently seated in a four-wheeler.’ Such ‘wonderful possibilities’ the street now possessed, Wilde Mused.)”
What? As someone who has spent the better part of her life playing The Sims, I’m totally jealous I can’t observe from above, those moments in history. The lives of people most of us have heard of brushing past one another. I just want to exist in that moment.
Anyway, the evening included some girly skin care things and painting my nails, because sometimes that stuff just feels nice.
Saturday, I’ll spend some time with new friends and then make my way home to more reading and cozy, quiet home life.
Self-Care Tip:
Take care of something that’s been bothering you for awhile or that you never seem to have time for. Alyson Stanfield calls these “tolerations.” The things like fixing a loose drawer. It bothers you, but you probably won’t do it until you’re trying to sell your house and when you finally do fix it, you think, why the heck didn’t I do that sooner?
It probably doesn’t feel very self-carey, but your future self will thank you and your present self can relax knowing you did something that will make your life a little easier. Mine was finally fixing my fridge. That’s not little, but I had been using a mini fridge until I could find someone to come out so it wasn’t that bad. I also had to work around finding someone to be here with me when the repair person came around. I watch the ID channel. I know what’s up. It took me 5 months to finally line everything up. The good news is, I feel like a freaking princess having my fridge back. So that’s my tip this week. Just do it. Get ‘er done. Or whatever over-used catch phrase you prefer. They have a point. Then reward yourself for a such a great job.
Now look at this pretty picture.
Treating yourself like a precious object will make you strong.
Julia Cameron
