book, bang, boo hoo

It's been a crazy few weeks. I've got the first edition of my book printed and published, so I'll be able to sell it at a conference where I am teaching a few workshops this weekend. I'm in the final week of my promotion to Nidan, or 2nd degree black belt, and we had to put my dear cat Simon to sleep just yesterday. So it's a time full of emotion, which I've long found the month of March to be.
It's a time of transition, not just for me but for the Earth, and I find lots of people talking about being in flux. I always attribute it to the Ides of March. I moved to LA around this time, and moved back to NY at the same time of year as well.
We're all feeling anticipation of the coming Spring weather, at least on the east coast. It's a subtler shift as you head west, and in many other climates I imagine. But here in New York it's palpable.
My art coach, Brainard Carey and his wife Delia had an amazing exhibition at the Whitney Altria, thru March 22, called Dreams and Possibilities. It was the first time Brainard and I met in the flesh; we talk on the phone every other week. So it was nice to have that face to face contact. And get to meet Delia too. They are both such beautiful, warm, open hearted people. And I just know they are true stars and will have stellar success over the years.
Gotta run. Will try to upload images and more links soon.

just about done!

Oh dear. I've been having my share of computer challenges lately, as I finish up the details on my soon to be self-published book, Magic Medicine: Rx for Creativity. I've been working on this book for almost 5 years in varying degrees of intensity. But for the last several months it's been on my hot list, and I'm now down to the wire. The content is finished, and uploaded to Lulu, and I'm just awaiting the finishing touches on the front/back cover art.

A dear friend, Naomi, has been an absolute angel, working on this for me, and putting up with my never ending indecisiveness.

I took a zillion (ok, I exaggerate) photos for the cover (you can see some of them above), and keep going around in circles about the sub title. But the great thing about self-publishing, especially on Lulu, is that I can create, and even print a book and then change it as many times as I like. So when I get tired of my own agonizing, I realize I can go ahead with what I've got, get it out there in the world, and change it when I'm sure about things. It doesn't get better than that, does it? I mean, so much in the world today is about deadlines, and making things perfect, and having to make what seem like irreversible decisions. But I don't function particularly well in that kind of environment. I'm SO process oriented, and really believe that it's a more natural way to live and be.

One of the great things about the internet and the digital revolution is the ability to revise quickly, change things constantly and be ever evolving. Business may do it at breakneck speed. And that's fine for all those type A's out there, but I'll take it at my own erratic pace, and enjoy the flexibility to be just as flaky as I like.

As soon as the book is viewable I'll include a link -- although I'd of course prefer you ordered a hard copy, signed of course by yours truly.