Category: Emotions

Productivity and what Tim Ferriss reckons

16/7/2014

I've been mooching around this week being kindof unproductive and getting a bit pissed off with that … a side issue that occurred to me is 'an addiction to feeling happy' is still a thing and thereby.. whenever any other less than happy emotion appears I wonder what I'm doing wrong. FFS is anyone else that way?
So… I recalled my friend Matt mentioning "HOW GREAT IS THAT TIM FERRISS" when we were hanging out on the weekend.. so I jumped onto itunes and went in search of a 'make me feel better please' podcast. Yep.. true. I do this all the time… who gives a flying fig if that is avoidance of feeling like shite.. it often works for me. I don't avoid how I'm feeling really.. I just think neurotic over thinking, and anyalysis paralysis is a bit (lot) freaking self defeating annoying sometimes. Tim Ferriss is the author of the 4 hour work week… I have not read it.. because I simply did not believe it was true.. possible or anything like that… but.. so far I've found he's great to listen to.. so maybe I'll read it sometime.
Anyway.. back to the podcast search ... I found this one called

"Tricks for the Neurotic, Manic Depressive and Crazy (Like Me)"
by Tim Ferriss here is the link

and I went ahead and wrote down is 8 points for productivity…

Wake up at least one hour before you have to be at a computer screen. EMAIL IS THE MIND KILLER. (yes… and WAITING FOR EMAIL is even worse … I've been noticing this)
Make a cup of tea, and sit down with a pen & paper. (I have actually already started this as winter has me taking large cup of chai tea with honey back to bed to do morning pages and read my fucking email and fb… so.. I appreciated the reminder that this is DUMB and I could leave out the iPad for another hour!)
Write down the 3-5 things and NO MORE that are making you anxious and uncomfortable, things you've been putting off…. MOST IMPORTANT… USUALLY EQUALS.. MOST UNCOMFORTABLE. There's oftentimes some chance of rejection or conflict. (HELLO, REASON NOT TO PAINT), so if you don't know what is most important, ask - WHAT IS MAKING ME MOST UNCOMFORTABLE.
So for each of these 3-5 things that you've written down, ask yourself these 2 questions . . . First question; if this were the only thing I accomplished today, would I be satisfied with my day. Second question you ask; will moving this forward make all the other 'to do's' unimportant or easier to knock off later, ie. is this thing a force multiplier (whatever that means?!)
Look only at the items you answered YES to. .. maybe your list of 3-5 becomes 1 or 2 now.
Block out 2-3 hours to focus on ONE of them for today.
repeat … One block of time, and FOCUS ON ONE item for today
Little bits of minutes don't count to make up the block… the distractions are too counter productive to you actually getting this thing done… when you feel yourself wandering.. or being distracted… gently come back to the ONE THING you're doing today.

I for one would be fascinated if anyone reading this finds this possible and indeed helpful .. and if you're willing to give it a go.. let me know.. I am going to give it a red hot go… I'm already down with the getting up early and making tea and pen and paper… so I feel somewhat at a small advantage here.. so if this is all new to you.. then take your time… as much as you need.. and maybe tell me next week.. if you tried it. I'd really like that.

I've also just this afternoon while writing this, going for a walk with man and his dog.... had a couple of ideas.. involving … 'desperate times… calling for (not desperate) but GENEROUS measures… so.. I'll go and make the necessary moves to get that happening.
If you want to hear how you could receive an opportunity to come to my Gypsy Retreaty Workshop at half the valued price.. or.. you'd like to know about winning a free seat at my table for a Smash Booking Session then… join the mailing list.. as I'll be sending a note out to them first.

bye for now,
love Denise.

*** off to take some inspired action ***

Day 15 of 30 : 30 Days in June

16/6/2014

aaaah.. I'm late to post… but.. want to keep them in order.. so here's yesterday's 'efforts'.

consciously wanting to break out of old patterns that no longer serve.. a desire for letting a little more wildness in … if not on the canvas… where? Surely.. I can allow any emotion to show up.. it's only on paper.. or board… let.. it… be.

lower right is now she 'really looks' others are fab app's on iphone.
bye for now,
it's Monday!.. I have to get on with that!
love Denise xo

and… HappyAnniversaryToPhillip&Me24YearsToday :)

Day 14 of 30 : 30 Days in June

14/6/2014

top left came after bottom right… same page… it seems to be changing to more angular.. masculine.. but probably not finished.

A bit of a melancholy start to my day.. pondering how it would have been my sisters 58th birthday (she died in '97) … and having a go with the loose style I've learned a bit from Misty Mawn.. so I keep trying it in my art journal.. funny how I can be much more free on the page sometimes…. maybe because it's not 'fraught with added expectations' . .. and as an astute artist I met said… "oh.. and you can hide it".
Day 14… and I am still keen to keep this thing going.. and w a n t t o f r e e u p s o m e m o r e

bye for now,
love Denise.

Courage to Create

30/5/2014

Is this my 'poor neglected blog' .. or just been waiting til I had something artful to say. I have another blog space I use for my 'anything-i-want-to-say-at-all' wonderings… (A Sip of My Tea . com) but I think I've designated this one to be … just art… as it's on my 'Artist website' … allowing for a variety of personality options is also fun for me :)

So today… I am sharing something that began yesterday… and I desire to bring in through all of June… and I'm not promising anything further than that, it only creates too much angst for me. I am joining in a little collective project, thanks to one of the lovely artists I met in Christchurch New Zealand earlier this month. Ruth Reid is instumental in the creative project called JOIN US IN JUNE FOR 30:30 that's a link to the facebook page. The idea is to create something each day for the 30 days of June. Anything… a painting, a page, a cake, a quilt square… anything creative … I'm going to focus on painting, whether that is large or small, or in my art journal, anything so long as I paint every day in June, and try my best to complete something every day in June too.

"Create something each day for the 30 days of June"

So… why do I think it takes courage to create?
Well it's one of my primary ways of expressing myself - and thereby there has been many 'strings' I have attached to it for some years… but THIS WEEK… thanks to a dear friend I had some help, clearing some of those attachments that no longer serve me, and this allowed me a way in that was seemingly difficult / nigh impossible for me to bridge before. I can tell the truth loudly in the pages of my art journal, but to be loud and open on my canvas (when the need arises, inside of myself that is) maybe for the world to see.. feel.. judge… can take courage.
The thing (think / thought) I have to remember :
It doesn't matter what other people think of me …
It matters what I think of me.

It matters what you think of you.

So… here's what happened yesterday… when I asked for couage to create inside just this one day
(taking it one day at a time was also very sage wisdom from my healing session the other day)
thanks whole heartedly to you Raelene Byrne. (Medicine for your Spirit)

I love the difference it made when I opened her eyes… that took courage from her too.
We're a team.. 'my wise inner self, my artist self, inner child, muse… ' it's take a bunch.

This painting will be going to an exhibition in Brisbane in June 'Celebration of the Female Form' you can find out about tickets to that here.

That's it for today… I better be off, to gather the 'Courage to create inside this one day'.

love Denise xo

a creativity manifesto

1/2/2014

Good morning friends,

This makes me want to write one for myself… do you have one?
I shared the link to an interview in another blog post in January, but having listened again in the car this week to Jamie's and Tami's chat I heard again his 'Creativity Manifesto' and I wanted to keep it, read if often, and share it with all & sundry.

As I begin February, and the Year of the Wooden Horse, this realllly spoke to me, I have had a shit time this past week dealing with my hyper vigilant perfectionist, mild anxiety associated with my creativity resulting in feeling frozen and not painting, it's a new month, I'll be addressing it for sure, and this kind of truth telling (Jamie Catto's creativity manifesto shared below) goes a long way towards helping me release the crappola and move into some kind of grace, a space for self forgiveness and self love.

Insights at the Edge.
From a podcast called: Breaking the Approval Addiction and Expressing Our Creative Gifts

Tami Simon: " OK, here we go. So this is from Jamie Catto’s "Creativity Manifesto:"

"We need to collectively admit that we’re not fine, we’re not confident and balanced and good. We turn up to work every day pretending we’re not neurotic and obsessed and insatiable and full of doubt, and we waste so much energy keeping up this mutual pretense for each other because we think if people saw the truth, if people really knew what was going on in our heads, all the crazy truth of our dark appetites and self-loathing, then we’d get rejected. But in fact, the opposite is true. It’s when we dare to reveal the truth that we unwittingly give everyone else permission to do the same. To stop holding their breath for a moment and actually come into the room. Be here, present, vulnerable and authentic.

"We’re on a mission to make self-reflection hip for just a moment, just long enough to save us. If we can all collectively acknowledge our insanity, shrug and roll our eyes at each other at how nuts it is being a human, let alone having to pretend every day that we’re "normal," the amount of energy we’ll inherit that has been wasted on the mask will be enough to creatively solve any global crisis."

Jamie Catto: "I’m in. I love hearing you say it."

full transcript of the interview can be found here:
http://www.soundstrue.com/podcast/transcripts/jamie-catto.php?camefromhome=camefromhome

with love,
Denise.

spontaneous Ritual

22/1/2014

As some of you know.. SARK is one of my favourite inspiring people in the world… and I listended to an 'unplugged' interview she shared this week, I've listened to it twice already I loved it so much and there was so much upliftment to be gathered. (I'm doing some stencil work as part of a commission and my inner perfectionist critic would have me get all flustered if I let it.. so I distract her with great talks on podcast, or interviews like this one.)

I was particularly taken with a gorgeous notion she shared …
when she said "What I enjoy, are Rituals that are born out of the Moment."

that alone was so comforting to me. I transcribed as much as possible word for word… I didn't want to leave anything out… earlier in her chat she had shared that she is scared about lots of things, but doesn't let that stop her from doing what she wants/needs to do. One of which was being audited by the tax dept (which actually happened) she gave a FABULOUS account of how that went, including reference to her Wise Self, and the Wise Self of the IRS agent.

So, I go walking with my partner John on the beach almost everyday . . . and we will get into subjects sometimes that start being less than;… nourishing, let's put it that way, we're repetiviely talking, or we're getting into scarcity, or we're going into fear … whatever, one of both of us are, and so we started this Spontaneous Ritual …
where we just pick up a rock or stick or a leaf or something ans we use it to Signify that thing we were talking about and we PUT IT DOWN and we say .. "Taxes, you are going to stay there, and we're putting you here with a magic supervisor that handles all the taxes of the Universe and you're going to discuss with that tax person and we'll be back later."… and we walk away and it's amazing how well it works.

I tried it this morning with a piece of pumice at Pt Cartwright beach... it helped me shift my focus, and on our walk yesterday afternoon I told my husband about it .. and he's a love… he tried it out too, with a stray leaf on the path in front of him.

that's it for now.. I just really wanted to share that simple, yet powerful idea with you.. in case.. you might need help sometime to shift your focus…. and like me… you enjoy fun.. unusual.. yet simple ways of doing so.

love Denise xo

p.s. if you'd reeeeaaaallly like to hear that interview.. email me and I can forward you the link, it's inside an email. It could also be available on her fb page, I'm not sure.

email me for link to Sark's interview

Gypsy Rose & Rio Abajo Rio

2/12/2013

You know there's only a little difference in the placement of letters between sacred and scared . . . creating and sharing something this close to my heart is both/and.

Gypsy Rose by Denise Daffara
Painted using the Color of Woman Method.

May you find
your inner strength,
May you have
so much self love
and self compassion,
you will give from
your overflow.

not scared enough to
not take action.

love Denise xo

In December 2013, I donated this painting to a Women's Shelter as a token of love and hope for them.

Art journal pages

18/9/2013

Below is verrrry simple video I made just to have a go with the You Tube diy thing ... it was quite easy... so am sharing it regardless of its simplicity :)
I painted the random colours over some writing in my journal the day before, then after a long conversation with a dear friend I just sat down at my art table, did a very quick pencil sketch, poured out some black paint and decided to take a photo of each line after I'd painted it. I don't have swish cameras set up for taking video so this was an experiment.

The one below... yesterday I wrote about 'sometimes i have a headache' because right now, my head is hurting.. for the second day in a row.. I left that to dry and this morning before I did anything, sat in my studio in my nightgown with a pot of tea... and painted this girl. The look I see in her eyes is quite 'fed up' ... and in regards to having a headache... I'd say that sums it up about right.

With love,
Denise. xo

Not sure what possessed me to do this... but... I started a brand new blog in addition to this one
... it's called "A Sip of my Tea"
it's a place I can collect my tea pics
and sprinkle in a little art as well.

Wordpress is not as easy as Weebly
but for now, I'm enjoying it.

Visit it here if you're cuuuurious. Denise xo

Emotions, when did I decide some of them are wrong?

10/9/2013

Today I went from really good.. to completely zapped.. seemingly 'nothin left'. I approached this morning with this ...

and this afternoon with this, behind this one below is 'a turmoil of emotions' from my perspective. Or behind my eyes... and it occurred to me about 'sadness' and 'grief', 'loss', even 'loneliness' when and why did I decide those emotions are wrong? I have noticed that when these emotions visit me I do just about anything to get rid of them... but I have noticed.. that if I be with them.. they are not so huge, not so bad and not so insurmountable as I first thought. * I am not talking about clinical depression here, I am talking about the regurlar range of emotions, like our normal roller coaster of life.

I had someone in mind today that I just wanted to say 'snap out of it' to, and that wouldn't be very understanding of me. So... maybe I can suggest, just being with your emotion, give it a voice, maybe in your journal, and then see how huge it really is. I like to think the strong one inside is up for the task of minding the young sad one on these ocassions too. If that's not working.. then go get some help from someone who 'gets' that stuff and can help you move through it.

Thoughtfully, and trying to be understanding.

Denise xo

blog : another
'sip of my tea'