The Big Purge

Something is in the air and it deserves some talking about. Relocation or maybe it's better called Migration. I’m wondering if it’s my imagination or if an inordinate number of people are uprooting to seek life elsewhere, even overseas. ( I realize that some citizens are fleeing our country.)

I’m not sure if it’s because Nathan and I have been through a cross country move that I am more aware of others pulling up roots and moving on. I am especially aware of young couples

Envisioning Life “Out West”

Returning from Arizona in 2016 - [See prequel Jan. 2026 blog post] - Nathan and I began to play with the fantasy of relocating to the Southwest.   Personally, I began to consider what such a move could mean for me. Would it be safe for me to leave everything and everyone behind -  at retirement age and after 30 years in a community - and move cross country?  Would my husband and I hold our tight bond regardless of any adversity we might face in a new setting? We had both failed in prior marriages so I might have been terrified at the prospect of becoming a “stranger in a stranger land” if this well intentioned adventure ruined our marriage. To my surprise and great relief, all of these thoughts were brief and fleeting. After 20 years with Nathan, my guts had "a knowing" that this marriage was indeed solid.  This wasn't the first time that my guts had delivered this message.  

Snow Canyon, Ivins, UT near St. George

Our decision to leave the nest was so easy that it had to have held a cosmic force behind it.   In 2017, we began planning for when to sell the house, what to purge, where to live, and the logistics for getting there. Getting where? Would we become nomads? Where would we visit? Were we looking for a permanent home? We studied maps. We dreamed of the life we wanted to live. We decided to wander without commitment and to head for St. George, Utah, for starters. We hoped to stay for a year and make side trips of a couple hundred miles out from there. When we were “done” there,  we planned to center ourselves in another spot and repeat the cycle until we decided to settle down.

How would we get there? We started shopping for a big comfortable car that would take everything we could pack into it for the long drive to move cross country. Everything else had to go.  We started planning for a huge purge of our possessions. Watch for next month's post about our year long effort to lessen our load!

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Getting “The Itch”

Sedona

As I shared in my December post, when I returned from my first visit to Sedona in 2015 I held a creative energy from which there was no release.  I then shared my Southwest experiences with Nathan in the hopes that he would develop an interest in visiting. I was doubtful that he would, though, because he had lived in California and had already traveled in the West.  I wanted it to be “new” to him!  It turned out that, other than a visit to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon years before, he had not explored Arizona. It also turned out that I didn't have a clue about the vastness of what is considered to be "the West". I grew up in Maine, ya know?

So, the following year, I was thrilled when we flew out to explore Sedona and beyond. Imagine my alarm when, as we drove into the outskirts of town, Nathan began to shout “Stop the car! Stop the car!” I thought he might be sick to his stomach. But when I did manage  to pull over, he jumped from the car with his camera and quickly headed for the looming reddish orange bluffs!

the aha moment

It was a whole different trip than my last. We hiked and explored Sedona shops & galleries.  We discovered nearby Payson with its Travertine bridge within Tonto Natural Bridge State Park, blindly selecting several trails - purposely unmaintained I might add - that took us four hours to complete. What were we thinking??? 

yes, that's me

waterfalling from "the bridge", but wait there's more!

We also travelled up to the South Rim for a few days. On day one we walked the Rim Trail amongst a throng of visitors. That night, my dormant brave side told me that I needed to experience those canyon walls. So on day two, with Nathan impressed by my gutsy attitude, we hiked down into the Canyon for a limited distance and then took at least twice as long to come back up. It’s steep, ya know, and we were taking pictures during breathing breaks.  LOL 

elmo, the professional stowaway

If you have ever hiked this trail can you prove it?

For me, the Canyon Rim hike just added fuel to the thought of actually living in the Southwest and having ready access to mountains that were calling to the spiritual side of me.  Besides, my body was welcoming the physical challenge of exploring those rocks. 

  

After ten days of “mountain highs” hubby and I returned to Florida and a clock in the ether began to tick - with intuition emerging at weird intervals - towards the possibility of a cross country move. “But where would we want to live?” was the question that began to haunt us throughout the next year. 

Arizona turned out to hold so much more than just gorgeous Sedona. 😎😎😎 - to be continued

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The Story of Tina's Sedona

Many people seem to think that I live in Sedona instead of Tucson and are puzzled by the name I gave my small woman-owned business.   I thought readers might be interested in how the name Tina's Sedona came to be and clear up any confusion. Every December differing versions of the "Christmas Story" are told, to which not everyone subscribes. So, here is a refreshing true story not open to debate. 

In 2015, a friend and I traveled to Sedona for the first time. In preparation, I spent time researching the nature of "vortices" and where I might find one in Sedona where it is believed they run rampant. My efforts were needless, because within 24 hours of arriving, I began to feel either high or drunk, I couldn’t decide. Vortices do move around and apparently they found me. Everywhere I went I asked people if they could feel it. Their response? "Sounds like a vortex has got ya!" There is much debate on the subject of altitude's impact on emotions. With Sedona at 4300 feet above sea level and me -- back then -- from St. Petersburg, Florida at 48 feet above sea level, that may have been a factor. That said, I would argue that, for me, this experience felt much more spiritual than physiological.

Seeing captivating red rock formations up close and personal within Sedona proper was indeed mesmerizing. Their energy was palpable! At the local airport, my friend and I attended a daily event that rendered an absolutely spectacular sunset.  

This is me at the airport. Do I look high or drunk? (I was neither, I swear.)

Was I inspired by the trip? Likely. But more than that, I was strongly influenced. The colors of the red-rock buttes, the vivid blue skies, and extreme sunset compilation heightened my innate love of color.  The whole experience seemed to create a sense of confidence, a “knowing”, and a steady stream of ideas with an urgency for my hands to produce artistic creations at a frenetic pace.  Suddenly, color, texture and nature became imperative for my pieces. Returning to Florida, my creative nature turned somersaults and began to produce creations that I had not before considered.

So instead of "business as usual" I got serious about my artwork knowing that my impression of Sedona and the energy I experienced there was always going to be with me, with no way to turn back. In every piece I produced, I would have no choice but to reflect my interpretation of Sedona. Hence the name Tina's Sedona! It came quickly and surely,  like an old friend, just waiting for me to discover it.   ➰➰➰

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Summer Sabbatical

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the word “sabbatical” comes from the word “Sabbath,” which is a day of rest dedicated to God. Essentially, a sabbatical is several Sabbaths put together. It feels like the right way to describe my past few months. I don't move forward but I don't move backward either. Ever been there, when all activity seems to slow to a state of silence, almost a state of paralysis? It is an unfamiliar state for me, but I am actually enjoying the "letting go" of it all. No projects moving forward. Dabbling with ideas but not pursuing them. Rest. YES, please. That's not to say I haven't accomplished anything. Just not a whole lot that I would normally sense as productive.

Ah, but, while on sabbatical there is still news to report from my neck of the desert.

Update on Tohono Chul Submission

Poor little thing feels terribly rejected... lol

My sci-fi Sonoran Desert piece was not accepted for the new Tohono Chul Exhibit "Exotic Sublime | treading softly". Honestly, I cannot tell you how relieved I was when I was notified. Smack dab in the middle of a planned vacation to relax was this project awaiting my attention upon my return. It wasn't ready and I wasn't either. That's not to say it would have been accepted even in a completed state. Then I would probably have been very disappointed to have finished it to no avail. But, alas, I was saved from stress I did not need. Will I ever finish it? Now that I am feeling very "sabbatical-ized" I am not quite sure...

Oh, But A Win!

I have managed to sell four out of five bracelets that I submitted to Tohono Chul’s annual 10 x 10 | A Fundraiser exhibition in progress through May 26th!

Utah & Arizona

How did I get into this silent place? Nine days, 1400 miles on the road and exposure to the most exquisite landscapes yet. Monument Valley, Arches National Park, Bryce Canyon to name just a few. I feel as if I was metaphysically hit by a wall of mountain in Bluff, Utah, where our second floor balcony faced a huge monolithic mountain range just feet from us, one that ran the length of the hotel and towered into an incredible sky. That kind of exposure makes it so easy to become silent, to pull back, to reassess motion and all activity. Do you think a vortex got hold of me?

My Current Pursuit

I am walking my way up to 3+ miles about 4 days a week. On vacation, Nathan and I discovered, as we had suspected, that our artistic pursuits have definitely slowed down our physical strength and hiking endurance. We are on a mission to rebuild and regain that. Optimism exists during sabbaticals...

Rest easy,

Tina

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Summer Has Flown

Beat The Heat

Rumor has it, here in Tucson, that there are just under 40 days left to the monsoon season. Summers are an interesting adventure here, especially this past week when a weather alert brought us out of our chairs and to instantly snapping pictures of what looked like oncoming disaster. I am familiar with the crazy "lightning capital of the world" experiences of our past life in Florida but these clouds were looking atomic. Is it weird that I found myself thinking about our homeowners policy?

We live in the Sonoran desert which gets as hot as hell and is destined to get hotter next summer (oh gawd). But aren't so many of us living in excessive heat these days? and for longer periods? Here's a thought...

Summer Musings of a Distracted Artist

It is official. I am considered an Artist. Though several wonderful mentors have told me so repeatedly I have barely had time to get used to the whole idea and now it seems like it's official since I participated in my first Gallery showing last week. Even more solid proof is
that my artwork will be on public display in one place, an actual Gallery, until August 7th, 2023.

Are you artistic? If you have no interest in this subject, just skip down to "Time to Lighten Up" and read about my summer sale.

If so, is your mind full of ideas that engulf it, spin it into distracting visions on a daily basis, and make it nearly impossible for you to narrow down the best idea with which to engage?

Are artists supposed to prioritize projects to...

Prelude to Summer in Tucson

Hello to Friends far and wide,

Vacay - next week Nathan and I will leave Tucson for the first time since we moved here two years ago to visit an old haunt of ours -- The Vermillion Cliffs in Northern Arizona. Marble Canyon is a place there that we have been yearning to explore instead of just driving through it. My heart can feel that energy already. It still lives "up there". It's hard to explain what it feels like for a vortex to plant itself within your psyche. I'm bringing my GoPro (and maybe a few beads...) Stay tuned!

Blooms - Right now the roadside and the desert scrub is flowering in all shades of yellow on all kinds of plants which will take the rest of my life to learn the names of. Very soon, cactus flowers are going to follow suit and burst into flame with yellow, white, and red flowers. I am particularly drawn to the...

Writing it Down

Author’s Note: Life has forever changed from the Pandemic of 2019. My perspective on it continues to morph as I hear about friends sickened by it, friends vaccinated because of it, and those who choose not to participate. For at least the next 3 to 5 years, I think I’ll be reflecting on life after Covid-19 and the challenges and opportunities it has brought us. Some of us will be calling it the “new normal” for a very long time. Personally, I see no point in looking back at pre-pandemic living, just to ache for its return. It's time to move on...

There will never be a better time to start recording your thoughts and experiences than right now. It is never too late. There are many forms it can take. Write letters, write short stories, write a novel, author a blog. Depending on the amount of time you have on your hands, you... 

Moving into the Now Moment

Much has been written about the Now Moment so I'm not going to explain it here. I just want to say that I think I've been inducted into this special space in the past few weeks. I haven't had much to write about from a philosophical angle and I am not into writing a travel log or sharing all the daily details of life so I've been remiss in posting to my blog. I really haven't had much to say. Then it hit me this morning that I've been busy "being" instead of "doing". Yes, I've been active during many of the "being" moments but the joy in those moments has been constant and timeless.  To me timelessness resides in a Now Moment. There is no past and no future, just now.  This my life now. My goal is to keep it that way.

So for those not on Facebook, you've missed a number of posts that I will present here pictorially... while I was "being". We have continued to hike and, more recently, bike!  And I've made some phenomenal necklaces which you can see on my website.  I am working on connecting with retailers downtown to sell it all. I have to make room for more!  This one is my current favorite.

I'm learning to control my bike before I risk live and limb on local bike trails which exist all over St. George. Right now I ride the local neighborhood streets and do figure eights in the parking lot where we live. This is a biking town! It is energizing and youth-ifying...  (a made up word). 

Sunday morning's walk took us to the Crosby Family Confluence Park where the Santa Clara runs into the Virgin River. Some bike trails are shared with pedestrians (like us) but the bikes get priority. This helped us decide to go get some bikes.

The skies, clouds, and sunsets here are phenomenal...  Until next time, savor your Now Moments!

Settling In

Settling in isn't as easy as it sounds.  The occasional uneasiness I feel during any one day tells me that I am in the process of settling in, whatever that is supposed to mean. We've only been here 17 days now. As you know, patience isn't one of my virtues so I have been (naively?) hoping that after unpacking the car and arranging our things, finding the grocery stores that suit our lifestyle, and setting a daily routine of walking these incredible St. George trails, some of the foreignness would melt away. And some of it has, actually. I can now take a shower and have all my things at my fingertips instead of searching through a travel cosmetic bag.  My pots and pans have taken over the kitchen here and the resident pots are stored away. Luckily, our furnished condo has the best of furniture and we sleep so well in its king size bed.  I was not expecting a plug and play experience when we moved away from everything we owned and everyone we knew, don't get me wrong. In fact, I wanted a complete change and that's what I'm getting. I'm not saying that any one thing is bothering me just that I feel like a fish out of water.

My studio is setup here but it is not the same studio I had there. Far from it. My creative energy wants there and it cannot have it. So I am ignoring the new studio and have moved to the living room couch in front of the TV (not) watching with Nathan but working on jewelry there. There is a sort of "clingy-ness" between myself and Nathan, me to him. I have a studio here but it's not that studio.  Something about sitting in my domain, that studio was feeding my soul. Now something is missing.  I spent a large portion of my day in there and that part of my life has to be recreated.  We will move from here in four months so this is really just an interim studio. I am learning from this rental just how to manage the next one. Until we decide to settle down in one place, this will be the drill.

I am missing the companionship of my girlfriends even though we did not see each other all that often. One month ago, a phone call could mean a lunch date or at least a nice phone chat over coffee. Those phone chats over coffee are something I am beginning to reach out for now that I'm (a little more) settled.  As I reread this I realize that settling in (for me) literally means transitioning into a new environment.  And so this is the way it must be for now.  I thank my lucky stars I still have all my jewelry making supplies to feed my creative needs, and I am pleasantly surprised that my creativity does not get derailed by the television in front of me.  I am wrapping stones and creating some gorgeous original pieces!  The energy in the mountainous trails we explore is feeding me.

I am beginning to enjoy cooking again with MY pots and pans. (smile). In past years I was preoccupied for so long with other activities--usually business related-- that cooking became more of a have-to than a want-to. Nathan did much of the cooking (thank God)! Now unencumbered, I have time to focus more on preparing fresh foods for cooking and returning to the cooking ritual that always soothed me.  I am more aware of what I am feeding my body. I feel better physically. Mentally is up for grabs (for now).

I just wanted to share the reality of what is happening here in our new location. I don't quite know how to end this post other than to try to say something funny.  How about "Mama said there'd be days like this.."? My Love to all of you...