Hello, friend! I’ve been blanket deep in nesting mode ever since the holidays and am fully enjoying taking some time to recharge. I’ve still been keeping busy with mailing out orders from my Etsy shop and putting together new goodies for my local retail stores, plus a few commission paintings to boot, but there has also been a large dollop of pug snuggling, baking and coffee dates with dear friends.
My finances are always a bit of a stress point at this time of year as I start applying for market dates (& paying those fees for 2013), and ordering new supplies. The craft market season doesn’t really get back into full swing until April, so January to March are rather lean. This year, however, I decided to invest in inspiration. Concerts, comedy shows, dinner at delicious restaurants…all the things I often skip in an effort to pinch pennies have been penciled in! Starting with…
Soaking up the sunny days with walks on the seawall is part of the Vancouver lifestyle that I really love. Yes, it rains a lot here. So when it’s sunny? Everybody drops everything & gets outside for jogging, biking, hiking, rollerblading, kayaking – anything that gets you outside. On January 2nd I saw a guy out there paddle boarding! He must have been pretty confident he wasn’t going to fall in ’cause that water must have been freezing! Welcome to the cult of the outdoors that is Vancouver. 🙂
My biggest splurge was taking my mister (who you can now follow on Twitter as A Cagey Beard) to see Cirque du Soleil – Amaluna. It was breathtaking! I’ve never been to a Cirque show before because I always thought it was the kind of show I’d go see in Vegas at some point. I didn’t realize that the touring shows are always new & different. And once they’re gone, you won’t get a chance to see them again. Thank goodness I finally took the plunge because I am hooked! I sat with my jaw dropped whispering “ohmygod!” for most of the show. It was beyond amazing & well worth every penny. Perhaps a new series of circus paintings should be in the works for 2013!
Next up – one of my favorite new bands, Whitehorse. They’re a folksy, singer/songwriter duo who I am completely smitten with – Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland. They have several tour dates coming up over the next few months & if you have a chance to see them live, I promise you’ll walk out of the hall floating on air. I was introduced to them last January when I saw them play live & their music has been in constant rotation in my house throughout the year.
Take a listen to their rendition of Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire”.
Another new (to me) singer I’m smitten with? Hannah Georgas. I saw her open for Mother Mother last month and snapped up her CD during intermission. Hopefully my neighbors aren’t sick of her yet because her beautiful voice has been looping on my stereo since Christmas.