22.06 - 05.07

(apologies this blog entry is more matter of fact and less esoteric than usual.  My past few weeks have been quite "down to earth")

22 - 23.06

My birthday.  Some nice presents but relatively quiet.  Walk and adventures planned for Saturday.

24.06 - 25.06

Went to see my friend Ana's exhibition at the Didsbury Arts Festival.   Will provide a link to her blog once I find one.

26.06 - 28.06
Went out for my birthday weekend.  Went to see a children's show inside a small metal whale.  It was quite strange and I think being a small group of grown ups slightly annoyed the man who was performing for us... though I think that added to the fun.  Anyway had a nice day out.  Here is a photo:

I think for the first time ever I've actually enjoyed the sunshine.  I usually hate that sort of thing and prefer the winter but have been quite absorbed in how primordial and leafy my current locale appears. 

Stayed up very late but ended up selling this picture to my friend Tony Scally who wrote the book Eyebrows and Other Fish.  An important work in reducing mental health stigma.

I used to work in Wythenshawe at the Civic Centre but have never been to deep Wythenshawe before.  Residential Wythenshawe was very Southern Gothic looking.  As you can see from these pictures I took:

29.06 - 30.06

I really haven't been doing nearly enough work this week or last week.  So to make up for that here is a very uglified Timothy Spallesque painting of me by my friend Helena Worthington

Which I believe is based on this image of me waiting outside the family entertainment performance, The Whale, at Didsbury Arts Festival:

I think that is my thinking face.

I think.

01.07 - 02.07

Time + Dedication + Perseverance + Hope = Freedom

New budget plan for the next 52 weeks.  I will live on £4 a day in order to save up money to pay off my overdraft and also to live nicely in an area of credit wherein I can actually afford things like moving house or going on lots of holidays.  A year sacrificed will actually create a more enjoyable future post the age of 35.  Setting out on such a journey is quite exciting.  The idea that each month from now my life will progressively become more bearable and each week will be something of an achievement.  The only things I can anticipate going wrong with this unemployment, injury, sickness, death or some other obstacle... but this is the thing with any epic... nothing ever goes as smoothly as you plan and you have to make sure that obstacles are traversable.  Perhaps it will be a smooth and simple journey but for some reason I imagine it will be difficult.  Healthy caution.

Just to illustrate how I have fun whilst not spending money here is a picture of some good sharp table angles:

03.07 - 05.07

My attempt to appear more busy.  Fill pages up with old note pad scribbles.  In all honesty even though I haven't been working much on my artwork or patterns I have been seeing friends and socializing and still managing to save a lot of money.  So I don't feel as if I am not developing or that I am stuck inside some form of creative rut.  The word "creative" in itself is some form of hyper ideal.  That somehow it can only be achieved through making artwork.  But I exonerate myself from having to produce artwork because as long as my actions are creative or progressive then the constant creation of art/patterns is not important.  Each action is a form of discipline.  Forcing myself to only spend £4 a day for a year (even though unrealistic as a goal) is actually as much of an obsessive art projects as this...  and that took about a year to produce as well.  The £4 a day project will likely develop me as an artist and teach me more discipline.  It will only take 52 weeks.  One of which is already done (and as I am posting this 2.5 weeks are already done, but lets not mess up the temporal illusion of what date this post goes up to).

No matter how bad my low my budget I still managed to go outside this weekend as well.  Drinking water instead of alcohol is healthier and very satisfying.  Every penny saved is a stroke of my ego.  Anyway here are some images of my weekend: