feh-bruary

I was feeling pretty great about my lack of feh-ness over winter thus far, but it hit me kinda hard on Saturday. I’m pretty darn tired.

My painful shoulder issue from December turned out to be frozen shoulder, which means I am in physical therapy several times a week to stretch and strengthen the joint and surrounding muscles, and lots of at-home exercises to do the same. Supposedly this affliction is most common in women over 40; having just turned 37, I guess you could say I’m mature for my age. 😐 I’m spending a lot more time in my car; to and fro for appointments, picking up kids, working in the gaps, eating on the go–all at a time when I’d rather be hibernating.

I’m also feeling a lot of frustration around my art. Making things doesn’t come easy right now, and most of what I make, I’m unsatisfied with. I’m trying to go easy on myself by taking time to play with my iPad every day, even if everything I make sucks.

But hey, it’s not all doom and gloom! My shoulder is healing fast; I’ve regained most of my range of motion, and it’s no longer a constant ache when I try to sleep. All that car travel means I have plenty of time to listen to audiobooks — I finished the first book in the Outlander series, a horror novel called The Winter People, and now I’m working on Annihilation. Next week the kids are off school for a l’il winter break, and the week after that, I’m traveling to Amsterdam to meet up with my team. By that point, it will be March; one month closer to spring!

wherefore art thou, spring?

I’m feeling pretty tired/run down/bleh lately; worried the anemia is creeping back, although that seems unlikely. It’s probably the weather, which has been unusually cold and rainy and lacking in sun. I’ll be heading to the Phoenix, Arizona area for a work trip in mid June, where forecasted temperatures promise to remind me to appreciate my home state’s moderate climate.

Until then, I’m sticking to an exercise routine, making time for doodling, meditating, and taking advantage of what little sun I can find. Here are more Procreate Pocket experiments. I’m slow with the creative work but still making progress on new stuff, little by little.