It's August 1st, 12:45 am and I can't sleep yet again.  I am physically tired but my brain won't shut off.  Before I get loads of folks telling me to meditate...I get it, I need to quiet the chattering monkeys in my head.  But here's the thing no matter how much I observe these thoughts I get caught up in the whirlwind of emotions.  I am easily swayed by a memory or a thought these days.  The ebb and flow of the moment takes over and then I'm kicking at my sheets, trying to find another comfortable position, turning round and round, chasing after them (the thoughts not the sheets).

Despite a pretty crappy week, today was a good day.  I spent the day cleaning my room.  Yes, I am one of these people who actually gets satisfaction from cleaning every nook and cranny.  It's Pine-Sol clean and it smells yummy.  Then my sister Vick came over and we walked down to JackRabbit where I picked up a pair of running sneakers. Let's see how many miles I can put onto these bad puppies.  We went and had some serious sushi, then hung out with Bleu who always manages to put his big foot in his mouth which is hilarious.  Lots of good loud laughing.  It's been ages since I've laughed this hard.

My sister Ces came over to the house with my three nieces and we hung out in a big old group and just talked and laughed.  My sisters really crack me up and I absolutely LOVE them for it.  It's amazing how we can go on for hours.  We shared some pizza and then her motley crew went home.  Vick left soon after to her place in the Bronx.  I went back to my room and finished folding and putting away laundry then fixing/dusting/organizing my shelves of painting materials which I've really needed to do for quite some time.

So I feel like I've gotten some much needed household chores done and managed to have one or two laughs with my sisters.  So why oh why am I still tossing and turning? Hmmm, I did not write today.  That was the one thing that I managed not to do.  No wonder I am sitting here cross-legged on my bed with my laptop perching on a thigh in the middle of the night wide awake.  *sigh*

I'm looking around my room and the loads of photographs of Spain and Maui tacked onto my wall.  Water fountains and waterfalls, and Gaudi architecture and I've got to say that I really miss traveling.  I  want to look into some traveling grants to get out of nyc, just for a week or even a weekend.  Perhaps a yoga retreat.  I feel so scattered and so not myself lately...and I want to escape that feeling.  Or at least find myself again.  That's such a New Age bullshit statement ...but I guess I just to reconnect and breathe again.  Now if someone can tell me how to shut off my brain that would help matters a great deal as well.

Jumping topics because this is how my brain is working these days: I managed to see the movie INCEPTION on Friday night and I thought it was a fantastic film by Christopher Nolan.  My brain really went to the esoteric element of levels of awareness in dream state.  I'm not really sure if that was the intention of Nolan but it left my brain buzzing for hours afterwards.  Do you ever get the feeling that information that is being imparted is coming from a deeper universal source?  Something almost mystical.  There is a definite paradigm shift happening in our cultural collective and seeing a movie like this one really resonated for me.  Goodness I've been complaining for weeks about all the crappy movies I've been seeing and then I saw CAIRO TIME and INCEPTION in the same week.

I'll write more about CAIRO TIME after it opens.  I'm not allowed to review this film based on my agreement with my screening group but I can't wait to open up that can of worms on August 6th.  All I'm saying about it is, if you want to see a quiet indie flick about Love, then go see this one.  I'll also write about how it's been affecting/influencing the play Prodigal that I'm currently working on.

It's now 1:27 am and I think this little writing stint did the trick.  My apologies for any spelling errors, run-on sentences and goofy phrasing...it's late, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.  I have to be up at 7 am for my weekly creative meeting with Tony.

Peace~


All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2010 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

Publisher Promotion

Dear Readers,

My publisher is promoting my book with a great discount of 15% off. 

If you or anyone you know is interested in purchasing a new book of poetry, the promotion code is attached below.

Please note, this book is downloadable for e-readers as well.  

It would mean a lot to me if you would spread the word to your circle of friends.

Best,

Liliana Almendarez

A Scorched Page Purchase A Scorched Page with 15% off with coupon code BEACHREAD305 Disclaimer: Use coupon code BEACHREAD305 at checkout and receive 15% off A Scorched Page. Maximum savings with this promotion is $10. You can only use the code once per account, and you can't use this coupon in combination with other coupon codes. This great offer ends on August 15, 2010 at 11:59 PM so try not to procrastinate! While very unlikely we do reserve the right to change or revoke this offer at anytime, and of course we cannot offer this coupon where it is against the law to do so.

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2010 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

So the last couple of entries have been up and down, solidly reflecting my state of mind.  Sunday I was up because Spain won the World Cup and yes I was cheering very loudly!!  Go Spain!!  I'm sure my Mexican ancestors are turning in their graves pero que se puede ser?  And that night I managed to finish putting together an application for a studio space.  The organization chashama helps artists find affordable studio spaces to work in NYC.  Go chashama!!

Then yesterday was a low-energy day.  I'm not sure if it's the humid weather or what but I'm just struggling with getting things done this week. I'm just feeling BLECK!  That is the official scientific term.  I worked on an art piece that I am building up and I couldn't get out of my own criticizing way to enjoy the process.  The judgmental internal voice really stopped the work from flowing.  Not to mention my 2-year old niece kept trying to climb my back while I was bent over the sprawled out canvas.  Although she kept making me laugh so there was that.  Plus my mother and grandmother where looking on while I tried to work through my process which is always pretty strange. My family supports my artistic efforts, up to a point.  They don't get why I'm doing it or how I do it and lately they watch me more often. Hmmm.  I'm not going to delve too deeply there.  Perhaps this is their way of supporting me by being witnesses to the artistic process. :-)

So today I went to preview a movie that totally sucked!  I can't say which one based on my agreement with the organization that allows me to see them at no cost.  After seeing that little 2-hour disaster, I decided to walk over to the MOMA and go visit some of my favorite art pieces.  My favorite is Jackson Pollock, his work makes me want to cry from the pure pleasure of looking at it.  The fluidity of the paint, the way the layers are built up, his work is just amazing to me. MOMA is also giving a special exhibit on Abstract Art by Women Artists.  As I was walking around this particular exhibit, I realized that I really need to look up more women artists.  My vocabulary pertaining to women and art is so limited.  I can name male artists with no problem but women artists (?). I'm shaking my head from the lack of knowledge.  I've got some homework to do.

Anyway, on my way home I bought myself a bouquet of White Lilies and Gerber Daisies.  Just something pretty to pick up my mood.  I love the smell of Lilies.  I'm hoping they'll shake me out of my funky mood.  ~Peace.

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2010 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.