It has been a crazy few weeks as I was sick in bed more than I was out of it. Even had to get help delivering the May Long Weekend paper (thank you to my helpers!) as I wasn't able to do it on my own.
Needless to say, that also meant no outside work got done. I did start pulling some GIANT dandelions from the garden the last week of May, but didn't get far (though they sure filled the pail fast!). I finally bought my garden seeds on June 5th from Bashaw Farm & Building Supplies, and picked up my plants (1/2 the amount I usually get) from Tailcreek Greenhouse on June 6th (pictured below). I planted the onions and cucumbers on June 7th before the wind got insanely strong. The planting would have gone smoother if I had the initial weeding done, but I didn't (too many days sick in bed) so had to weed before I could plant more on June 8th - planted corn, turnip, beets, peas, beans, melons. I was out again on June 9th to weed before I planted peas, carrots and potatoes. More weeding (waist-high quack grass behind the garage!) on the 10th and I debated how badly I really needed to plant more carrots. I was sick in bed June 11 &12th (because I overdid it??) so hopefully by the time you read this, I'll have either planted the rest of the carrots, or decided not too.
Celebrations:
- My neighbour contacted me on May 28th to say she was getting rid of some art books and offered to let me have a look to see if I wanted any! I took a handful and look forward to reading them in the coming months.
- My banner for Pride Month went live on the Wondercafe2 site on June 2nd. That just leaves the summer banner still to come.
- I published two more comic strips in the paper and posted them online.
Recently Completed:
Since the last newsletter, I've completed...
GROW painting (watercolour pencils, acrylics, Inktense pencils, Posca paint pens on 9x12 mixed media paper) inspired by a process by Whitney Freya
I'm still playing with Charlotte Hamilton's 5-minute self-portraits (she used markers for hers) process. While it would be great to create a self-portrait that actually looks like me, that isn't the real purpose of the process. The real purpose is to loosen up your drawing (painting) style, and to notice what ends up on the page - ie which facial features get highlighted and which don't.
- I completed more mini collages on 4.5x6 mixed media paper
In Beth's Kitchen:
My dandelion adventures continued as I made 11 cups of dandelion broth (steeped the whole plant from root to blossom) on May 8th. I use the broth as a base for soups/stews and to cook my rice or pasta in.
I made a couple more quarts of dandelion tea on May 11th.
On May 24th I filled an aluminum roast pan with dandelion blossoms, and then filled it again on May 25th. It took me 4.5 hours total to separate all of the petals from the base of the flower! I could only work for half an hour at a time, and had to rest at least half an hour in between.
On June 3rd, I went out and picked a bunch of lilacs and started prepping them to make syrup. After 2 hours, I only managed to get half of the petals I needed, but I needed to rest so put the blossoms in water overnight. I finished prepping the petals on June 4th, and had a Dutch oven steeping for syrup and a smaller pot steeping for juice. Paper deliveries delayed the next step so I didn't get the juice strained till June 7th. Ended up with 9 cups of juice.
Then I strained the Dutch oven and made 17 cups of lilac syrup. This batch is considerably darker than last year's because this batch steeped for over 2 days, whereas I think I only steeped last year's 8 hours or so! I had hoped to make more, but will have to see how my health situation goes.
Jigsaw Puzzles:
Since my last letter, I completed two 1,000 piece puzzles (one on the left was labelled 500 piece but was definitely 1,000!)
UFO (UnFinished Object) Update:
- My whole life feels like a UFO! Haven't touched anything except what I've already mentioned.
Courses and Challenges (free and paid):
- Minette Riordan Mythical Makeovers (free) course - I watched all of the course videos and just need to finish my journal.
- Angela Murray's 6 week Painting Happiness (free) course - On May 10, I completed my second mandala. Haven’t progressed further on the canvas yet. Part of the next step involves writing a letter to myself from my Future Self a year from now, and I haven’t felt up to letter writing lately.
- I completed Whitney Freya's Shine Your Light free masterclass on May 25th, and finished my journal spread on May 26th. It’s very sparkly, but unfortunately that doesn’t show in the picture.
- I forgot to mention in my last letter that I started Amanda Sophia's free mini course on Feng Shui - just learning the basics so far.
- I also signed up for Amanda Sophia’s free Geomancy & Land Healing course - haven’t started it yet.
- Amanda Sophia's free mini Divine Woman Awakening course on the Celtic Wheel of the Year - We're nearing the end of the season of Bealtaine (started May 1) which was all about joy, fun, passion, and play. My health challenges this past month put a kibosh on fun and play for the most part. 😛 Hopefully, the upcoming Summer Solstice season will be better.
- I'm practicing my drum playing daily, and still haven't moved onto the next lesson yet.
- Recipes, Remedies, and Rituals Ayurveda course practices: eating only my personal portion size during each meal and doing abdominal rubbing throughout the day to help with digestion/elimination and overall relaxation of the body.
Works in progress:
Currently, I'm working on...
- a 9x12 page of watercolour play
- inspired by Whitney Freya classes, I'm working on another word painting
- a 13" (?) inch round acrylic painting (from Painting Happiness course)
- a 16x20 acrylic painting
- seated forward bends! It's a good thing I have these pictures because there are weeks I have no sense of any improvement at all!
2nd row (L-R): Mar. 11, Mar. 18, Mar. 25
3rd row (L-R): Apr. 1, Apr. 8
4th row (L-R): Apr. 15, Apr. 22, Apr. 29
5th row (L-R): May 6, May 13, May 27
Bottom (L-R): June 3, June 10
Featured Items for Sale:
"Magical Moments in my Day Journal: for the extra special moments all around me" 6x9 lined journal (2022/2023) $15 or from Amazon https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CJLKZ3KB
Please contact me at thechautauqua@gmail.com or phone 403-352-3837 to make a purchase.
Upcoming Projects:
- I offer Pay-What-You-Can Distance Reiki/Energy Healing sessions. 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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Thank you so much for your support, and again, if you would like to receive this newsletter directly via email please email: thechautauqua@gmail.com and ask to be added to the mailing list. Thank you!
Back issues of this newsletter can be found here: https://thechautauquanewspaper.blogspot.com/ under the category "Artist Newsletter"
If you would like to support my artistic journey, please consider purchasing my artwork, items available in person at 4910-47 St, Mirror, AB
or by making 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 continuing to bring joy and inspiration! Thank you so much and have a marvellous day!
