Recently...
- Free in the Deep Blue
- Future Me
- Snowy Owl (would rather be reading...)
- thank you, Portland
- colors colors colors
- prints for sale!
- colors in you
- home again, home again
- time to chill
- Wordstock!
- deadline world
- Reading this Saturday!
- diorama!
- Reading, interview, and a star review in Booklist!
- new season, new projects...
- Bandits book giveaway!
- Beware! BANDITS are on the loose!
- here we go...
- More Bandits...
- Bandits etc....
- pantyhose!
- etsy store is open!!!
- Bridget Zinn
- Juniper in Wonderland...
- Crafty Wonderland Spring 11
- spring treats
- what up
- true colors
- dibble dabble
- six months......
- more bonnie
- Softie Whale Hero
- bike samples
- Valentine!
- February blah
- this week...
- little times
- Poof
- home again, home again
- vacation!
- thank you!
- two more days...
- december stuffs
- thanksgiving
- arc!
- Show at Black Wagon
- Bed Head
- witchy times!
- All Glory (to the hypnotoad..)
- Juniper's First Week....
- welcome baby!!
- nesting...
- Presents, and goodness....
- Lucky baby, again!
- Lucky baby....
- 36 weeks.....
- Celebrate Good Times..
- Intern!
- Goo
- Tides
- Competent Communicator!
- the ocean floor
- etsy store
- Proofs!
- art and the vineyard
- so long, spring
- The middle of June?
- New Work
- home again/interview
- nyc
- Bethel Street Gallery, new paintings!
- Crafty Wonderland Super Colossal Spring Show
- Maude Kerns Artists Panel
- Rieke Art Fair
- the bump!
- Anna Vogelzang
- SCBWI Western Washington Conference
- Maude Kerns Art Center!
- Seattle!
- Chicago Mural
- new art, and chicago good times
- onwards, upwards, etc. etc.
- buckman and bethel street gallery
- fin
- Raccoons, interview, and dry basements
- Bandits bandits bandits...
- Adios, January
- Green Bean Books
- Belmont Library
- Movin on up..(to the northeast side!)
- Happy Holidays!
- Crafty Wonderland on Sunday!
- The New York Times
- Holiday Stuff
- Drumroll please...
- Gobble, gobble
- Three cheers and crossed fingers!
- OPB
Future Me January 02, 2012

If I could give each of you a gift in 2012, it would be a time machine. (Before you get too excited, it's not a DeLorean, or a police box, or a phone booth, or even a hot tub...)
And actually, this particular time machine, will only go forward in time, not back in time, which is probably for the best. And honestly, it's not a machine at all, more like a website, mixed with the awesomeness of your own self. But trust me, it's still a really good gift. Are you ready?
About ten years ago, I heard about a site called futureme, where you can send emails from yourself, to yourself, in the future! I've been faithfully sending emails to myself ever since, with big, wonderful results.Confused? You can read more about it right here.
These days, I get so excited when I see a message from past me in my inbox. (All in all, a more positive thing than, say, reading my old journals...something that usually happens once every few years, inspired by a mopey Sunday and/or a chipped mug full of red wine.)
I'm sure you'll find your own way when writing to your future self, but if you need some inspiration, my messages tend to fall into one of these categories:
TOUGH LOVE
If I have a reoccurring problem or issue (like, if I'm trying to quit juggling knives or devouring marshmallows or gossiping about Mr. Petunia, or whatever...) I'll send some tough love to the future to make sure i've cleaned up that part of my life. Usually, just getting a reminder that I was dealing with the same old thing a year ago (or two years, or five years...) is depressing enough to inspire a real change.
UNCONDITIONAL LOVE
If I know of a big thing that is going to happen in the near future, I like to check in and send myself some nice words. (I wrote my future self a lot of letters around the time that my daughter was due to be born.) Who knew that future me would love hearing some loving words from past me? Turns out, a lot.
PSYCHIC POWERS
This is one my favorite games to play with futureme. First, I pick a time in the future when I would like to receive the email and then I sit quietly for about five minutes while I mentally place myself in that chosen point in time. I try to use all of my senses and truly experience what I imagine. Sometimes I have hard time visualizing clear images, but I get feelings and inklings about people/places/things. When I've gathered enough of those inklings, I type a nonsensical string of predictions. Often times these things fall flat, but I've had enough hair raising spot on predictions from past me, to make me a believer. Go ahead, try it. Whether or not you are actually predicting your future, or creating your own future by visualizing it, I cannot say. Either way, it feels pretty excellent.
GOALS
I love making lists of goals and hopes and dreams, more than just about anything. Sending them to the future is an interesting experiment, not just to see what was (or wasn't) accomplished, but to see the things that rise to the surface again and again. I've found that the goals that keep coming back, are usually the real deal.
RANTS
Feel like sending a crazy ranting email? Why not send it to the one person that will truly understand your unique brand of crazy? You! I've received a bunch of these types of emails from myself over the years, ranting about all kinds of people/places/things, and pretty much without fail, my perspective and outlook softens when I read them in the future. Which, I like to think, makes the world the teeny, tiniest bit more loving.
Happy 2012 to you, and future you!
Snowy Owl (would rather be reading...) December 13, 2011

Wouldn't you?
You can get a print or a card of this image, right here.
thank you, Portland December 12, 2011

Thanks to everyone who came out to Crafty Wonderland this weekend. What a great show! It was fabulous to see your faces, and inspiring to see all of the amazing work from fellow vendors.
I have a blast of emails that I'll be sorting through this week, inch by inch. Thanks so much for your support and love. Having a booth at Crafty is like being dunked in a ginormous vat of positive affirmations.
colors colors colors November 29, 2011

Busy prepping canvas colors for Crafty Wonderland!
prints for sale! November 21, 2011

Hello!
Exciting developments around here....
You can now order my artwork prints from Red Bubble.
Red Bubble handles all of the printing and shipping, so this will make things much simpler. Mostly because you will no longer have to rely on my sporadic post office visits and archaic filing system to get prints! Hooray!
Not only that, but Red Bubble offers you a lot of printing options, (mounted prints, canvas prints, framed prints...) something I've always wanted to do, but have never been able to successfully pull off. I've (finally) accepted that it's best to leave those details to the professionals.
But don't fret, I'm sure I'll fill my newfound free time with lots of important things...like cat wrangling and squirrel-pants dancing!
I'll be keeping my etsy store for original paintings, something I hope to have available soon. I will also be keeping one print in my etsy store, In Memory of Bridget Zinn. You can read details about this print right here.
Thanks so much for your support and happy shopping!
colors in you November 07, 2011

So excited to finally be able to share a tiny colorful corner of a new project that is starting to shape up into something real....out of the dream world, and into the real world. Inch by inch....colors in you.
home again, home again October 31, 2011

We're back! Man oh man, what a lucky trip. Sugary sand beaches, beautiful meals, family time, Juniper loose on the beach (thanks Lute, for the awesome picture!) and swimming and swimming and swimming in a warm ocean every day. Ahh, to say I'm refreshed and ready to start in on new projects would be an incredible understatement. I feel cleaned out and deeply relaxed in the parts of my brain and bones that have been holding onto tangled thoughts and stresses for many months. More soon...
time to chill October 21, 2011

For those of you keeping track, I've illustrated three books this year. As a matter-o-fact, moments ago I shipped off the final art for RABBITS ON SKATES (Roaring Brook Press, 2013). Each project has been a joy. Peppered with a lot of hard work of course, but truly a joy.
That said, I am most definitely in need of a break. I'll admit it. My body is a tangled piece of spaghetti. I have 'painty claw' as Gabe calls it, which means my left hand is knotted and clenched in the morning and requires a lot of kindly massages from said husband.
In the luckiest turn of events, we're taking some much needed, family-vacationy-time. Tomorrow we head for a warm beach, and a week of relaxing in the sand! See you soon, bunnies!
Wordstock! October 05, 2011

I will be at the Reading Local booth at Wordstock this Saturday, from 10-11:30 am. I'll be signing books and giving high fives. Stop by if you get the chance!
You can also read a little Wordstock write up about yours truly at Reading Local, right here.
Hope to see you!
