Deanne Fitzpatrick offered a program called "March is For Makers" this year to encourage folks to rug hook daily in March. I didn't sign up because I still haven't finished her "Playful Joyful Rug Hooking" course from last year. That said, I did decide to do my own creativity for the month of March, and have completed something every day (except one day as I was too sick) so far.
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Word of the Year: Hobbit (Comfort / Cozy)
Celtic Year theme: Joy and Delight (fire, do what brings you joy weekly, how can you bring joy to others?)
[WINTER/REST]: Cleansing Body and Spirit (water, clear your energy/spirit)
Imbolc: Accept Love (fire, accept with an open heart)
[SPRING/PLANT/SEEDS]: Give into Passion (fire, let yourself go and follow your bliss, replenish yourself with joy and passion)
Spring Equinox: Healing Waters (water, take a healing bath)
Celebrations:
It's now 6 months later, and the greenery from the Telus bouquet is STILL lush in the vase on the table!
Feb. 22nd, I invited my neighbour to the Stettler Variety Showcase concert - Sue Foley - who did an incredible tribute to early female guitar players and their different styles.
Feb. 26th, I filed my income tax and GST. Nice to have that off my plate for another year.
Mar. 7th I went to Bashaw to the "24 Hour Musical" - a fundraiser for the school volleyball program. From 4 pm Friday (after a full day of school) the students then spent 24 hrs (with food and rest breaks) learning and rehearsing a musical which they performed at 4 pm Saturday (there was a 2nd performance at 7 pm) - the audience didn't know which show we would be seeing till we arrived (The Little Mermaid Jr) - there were 22 students in the cast and some had to have their scripts in hand, some needed lots of prompting, some made hilarious errors (which made the show even better than if they'd gotten the line right), and it was a blast! So much fun and laughter.
I watched Hallmark movies on the Global app on my ipad and Josh Johnson's comedy sketches online for laughter and stress relief.
I published two more comic strips in the paper and posted them online. Both are repeats from last year.
Recently Completed:
Since the last newsletter, I...
I finished my "Mandala" painting (13 inch round - acrylic, Posca paint pen, glitter glue) on Mar. 1st.
I also completed 27 covered coathangers. This is a nice craft as it is easy, uses my hands, doesn't involve a lot of thought, and gives gratification as I can complete a hanger start to finish in about 15 mins. I've been completing an average of 2/day. I sell the covered hangers for $2 each.
I finished my 43rd cartoon comic booklet. You can view it here: https://www.facebook.com/beth.richardson.10/videos/2946877649036634
In Beth's Kitchen:
On Feb. 12th, I made more potato chips and refilled my snack container. I made tomato Parmesan, lemon + dill, bacon, and salt & pepper.
Feb. 13th, I made two nut pie crusts and popped them in the freezer.
Feb. 14th, I made 2 no-bake chocolate cherry pies with the pie crusts. Perfect treat for Valentine's Day!
Feb. 17th, I tweaked the recipe and made a batch of applesauce bites - worked much better than my first attempt! Later that day, someone in town (who had seen my post on Facebook) contacted me to see if they could have a sample! They popped over and I gave them 4.
As my snack container was completely empty (they don't last as long when I share!), I spent 2 hours on Feb. 21st and refilled it with more microwave potato chips. I made salt & pepper, bacon, garlic (salt), and I used a mixture of all the seasonings I've tried so far. I almost have a 2nd pail of potatoes empty.
Feb. 24th, I baked 9 potatoes - I thought they were bigger than they ended up being! (It did cross my mind, before I put them in the oven, that I probably should just have made them into potato chips!) I was just going to leave them as baked potatoes, but decided to give the potato waffles another try. The potatoes were too small for the waffle iron, but I managed to get some mini waffles. Still didn't "work," but closer to what they were supposed to be, so I won't give up completely yet on this recipe.
Feb. 28th, I made a baked oatmeal with applesauce.
Mar. 2nd, I made more microwave potato chips: salt & pepper, and a mix of all the seasonings.
Mar. 8th I made another batch of microwave potato chips: lemon + dill and salt & pepper.
Mar. 9th I used the last of my smaller potatoes and made more microwave potato chips: salt & pepper and chive. That leaves just 3 large potatoes from my garden and I have other plans for them. I wasn't sure I'd be able to get those pails off my kitchen floor and now they are gone!
Mar. 10th I made a batch of applesauce bites. I love how easy they are to make. They are almost like baked apple fritters.
Jigsaw Puzzles
I can't believe I haven't finished a puzzle since mid-November! The one I'm currently working on has been more challenging than I expected. The edge pieces came together easily, but I am only able to put 2-3 inside pieces together in a week!
UFO (UnFinished Object) Update:
As part of my Hobbit year, I'm going through the Inner Circle Let It Go, Let It Flow program again. I make sure that I let go of (or put away, or finish) at least one physical item per day, and delete at least one computer file per day. At this point, I'm still going for the easy win, so am focussing on the really easy items. Some of my bigger highlights so far...
- continued to delete old "someday" files off my computer...out of the umpteen guided meditation audio files, I only kept 3! Next will be the saved workshop videos.
- I washed my tabletop water fountain and finally set it up - I haven't used it since I left the library almost 13 years ago!
- a few years ago, I was given 2 incense sticks that I haven't used, so I pulled one out and did a Feng Shui space clearing of the house on Feb. 13th. I'll use the 2nd incense stick for another space clearing in March (spring equinox?) or around my birthday (depends on how much more I release from the house).
- shredded old receipt books and deposit records from 2002 - 2017
- box of old Chautauqua papers to a neighbour who moved this month - also gave her the 2 SARK books and "Pencil Dancing" book as she’s a writer.
- in 2019 I took part in a year-long selfie/day challenge - which was interesting as I was very sick, and mom was in the hospital/passed away - the object of the challenge was to take a selfie first thing in the morning EVERY SINGLE DAY and not "judge" it (that was the real "challenge" part!). I kept all 365 of the selfies on my computer, and recently started going through them - most I deleted, but there were a handful that I kept as they are good pictures.
- I listened to a storytelling audiobook that I had saved on my computer - I'm not really an audiobook fan as they tend to just put me to sleep, so I was only able to listen to 1/2 hour at a time of the almost 4 hour audio! I'm glad I listened to it as it was a neat book, and then I deleted the file as it wasn't one I needed to save to listen to again.
Kiala Givehand’s 7 Books in 7 Days course: I still have ideas for books I want to make though that's on the back burner for now.
Courses and Challenges (free and paid):
Deanne Fitzpatrick's (paid) Playful Joyful Rug Hooking beginner course: I will get back to this soon!
Physical Activity:
We got quite the dump of snow, so my neighbour took his snowblower to my sidewalks and around my vehicles Feb. 17 and 18th.
After some massive melting, it cooled off and I had a lot of ice on my sidewalk. Mar. 9th, I spent 35 mins and got 3/4s of the ice all cleared off.
Rebounder: My aim was to increase to a minimum of 2 mins each day. Then, serendipitously, I received some information on the "Health Bounce" where your feet don't leave the rebounder and you're just bouncing gently like you're walking (alternately bending knees slightly). The person described it as more meditation and less sweaty workout! Yet, it still gives all the advantages of jumping, without the impact. I decided to give it a try and started off with 5 mins, twice a day. After 2 weeks, I was able to increase that to 10 mins, twice a day! I'll see how I do before I decide if I want to increase the time going forward.
"Mystery activity” I’m still doing this DAILY!! For 2026, I'm just going to enjoy the activity and not worry about reaching a specific time duration or level of proficiency.
Works in progress:
Currently, I'm working on...
- Era of the Dreamers journal
- personal smashbook for DAILY journal writing as part of my connection to Spirit and my Guides
- mini collages - I am almost set up again (everything got moved for Christmas) so I can get back to these.
- painting (18-20?) ceramic Easter egg people from Gramma's craft kits (acrylics) - on hold
- UFO crochet project (not food) - on hold
- my next small hooked rug (on hold)
A good friend was surprised to hear that I had never watched the TV series "Yellowstone" and highly recommended it. Despite good intentions, I haven't started season 1 of the Yellowstone prequel "1923" yet.
Featured Products for Sale:
This is a great time to get back into routines, so I have my hour long Love Your Body Yoga Class (suitable for beginners and all levels) available in digital format for $20. If you would like to experience this class, please email thechautauqua@gmail.com.
I have inspirational card decks, journals, chapbooks, musical CD's and more for sale that would make gifts and stocking stuffers. Please contact me at thechautauqua@gmail.com or phone 403-352-3837 to make a purchase. Or visit 4910 47 St, in Mirror, AB. Items are also available for sale at Amy’s Bakery on Main Street in Delburne, AB.
I offer $50 Distance Reiki/Energy Healing sessions. I’ve been an Kundalini Reiki Master since 2023. Energy healing works great from any distance and I've sent Reiki healing as far away as Queensland, Australia. Please, contact me to set up your healing session.
"I have been suffering with Long COVID for over a year and have tried every healing modality in the book to get my energy back. Beth has been gifting me with healing Reiki energy for quite some time now and I have, for the first time in over a year, started to feel like myself again. Much of my weakness has dissipated, and the dark cloud that I have been stewing under has lifted. Thank you Beth. ♥️" - Carla, Esthetician, Nova Scotia
Thanks for reading, and as always, feel free to share with anyone you think might enjoy it.
Beth
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Back issues of this newsletter are found here: https://thechautauquanewspaper.blogspot.com/ under the category "Artist Newsletter"
To support my artistic journey, please consider purchasing my artwork, items available in person at 4910-47 St, Mirror, AB
or make a donation via
Mail a cheque or money order (made out to Beth Richardson – Chautauqua) to Box 261 Mirror, AB T0B 3C0
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Your support and kindness are always greatly appreciated, and I look forward to bringing you joy and inspiration! Thank you so much and have a marvellous day!
