Life Keeps Changing!

 

Resilience.  12 x 12 in, acrylic on canvas

I have heard that life is what happens when you have other plans.  I believe this is true.  I would never have guessed some of the things that have happened for me lately.

 After the Rain.  12 x 12 in, acrylic on canvas

 Up on the Ridge.  12 x 12 in, acrylic on canvas

First there was the five weeks I spent in Why, Arizona, with my boyfriend Steve.  I had planned to only work on eBay while I was there.  I had been invited to participate in a local artists exhibit at Grapes Gallery in Truth or Consequences for April and May, but I thought I would put off doing any of the artwork for this show until I returned to New Mexico, after my visit to Arizona.

Sensory Overload at the Annual Dahlia Show.  12 x 12 in, acrylic on canvas

 Dream Garden.  12 x 12 in, acrylic on canvas

However, I found my time in Why to be so relaxing and inspiring that I changed my mind.  When Steve was going into Tucson for a couple of days, I went with him and bought canvases, acrylics and brushes, and painted for the rest of my visit.

 What I Remember of the 80s, Minus the Mullets and Muscle Pants.  

12 x 12 in, acrylic on canvas

I'm happy with my paintings.  They are the first pure paintings (without being mixed media) that I have done in a while.  I liked working with the smaller canvas size and the square shape of the canvas.  Today I will get the wires on the back so they can be hung tomorrow.

When I got home, I also pulled this mixed media piece out of my storage room.  It's one I haven't shown anywhere yet.  I had sort of a love-hate relationship with it, but I like it better now that I've given the alligator teeth:

 

 Florida.  16 x 20 in, mixed media

So...for the past several months, I've been musing about how I could maintain a presence here in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, where I'm having some success as an artist, and also be able to afford to travel several months of the year.  How could I leave during the hottest part of the summer and the coldest part of the winter, and still pay rent on an apartment, while incurring travel expenses?  

Steve and I discussed lots of possibilities and finally decided it made the most sense for me to buy a larger RV, one that I could live in during my stays in TorC and could also use for my travels.  The Guppy, a 22ft 1982 Toyota Dolphin mini-motorhome, was great for when it was just me and the neurotic cat driving around the southern part of the United States, looking for where I was going to settle down.  But it didn't give me room to spread out, and my life has grown.  Now I do lots of artwork, in addition to selling on eBay.  I also like to sew and do various crafts.  And I have a relationship with a guy who enjoys travel as much if not more than I do.  

So immediately upon my return to TorC a little over a week ago, I began seriously looking for a larger rig.  And I found one right away, up in Mesa, Arizona.  So I had barely caught my breath when it was time for me to turn around and go back to Arizona.  I bought a 1991 35-foot Class A Holiday Rambler Imperial motorhome, in excellent condition.  As a tribute to the Guppy, I named the new rig the Beluga.  Thar she blows:

 

She is magnificent inside and out, having been well cared for by the original owner for about 20 years.  I bought her from the second owner, who'd had her only about a year.  Here are some interior shots:

 
So next begins the process of downsizing, something I've been through before.  I've lived in my apartment for about a year and have acquired some furniture that has to go.  I have to sell my beloved Guppy.  I will basically have to go through everything I own (again!) and determine what goes with me into the next phase of my life.

Steve is keeping Bel (short for the Beluga) over at his place in Arizona for about a month.  When it gets really hot over there, he'll move into the motorhome and bring her over here to New Mexico, and I'll move in, too.  We'll probably stay here in TorC for May and perhaps part of June, then head off somewhere cooler when the temps reach 100 degrees or so here.  

At least that's the plan for now!  Given life's tendency to drift in directions other than what I've planned, we'll just have to wait and see.