Not raring to go

Part of the challenge of these exercises is the temptation of the collage elements. I'd been looking at this horse for days, tempted by it, but when all the other bits of this started swirling out of the middle (because one of the pencil marks I'd added looked a bit like a bird, I'd added an olive branch to its mouth and things sort of evolved from there) it just seemed like the horse needed to be there.

I hasten to say I'm not a horse person, though I do appreciate their beauty. But as soon as the horse was there the title came to me: Rarin' to Go! And of course that's true -- we were supposed to move into our new place on Monday, and now it's been delayed I'm just itching to get there and start putting things together.

But instead I'm using that energy to keep loading up the car with things we don't need the movers to pack or carry. I drive a load up almost every day and stuff things into whatever corner of the house seems appropriate, but I haven't unpacked or sorted any of the items at all because these are mostly non-essentials and I want to be sure the essentials have room before I start finding space for the non-essentials.

At least, that's the excuse. And it's reasonable, except the real reason is I'm tired. Moving is exhausting, and now our lovely new home is filled with bags and boxes of things I care little about. How is it we've accumulated so much stuff? I'd say my hoarding husband is responsible -- and he is, for a lot of it -- but I'm the one who has 120 canvases lining the walls of the great room. Maybe I should stick to these little watercolors for the rest of my life, and just try to sell off what canvases I have? They take up SO MUCH SPACE!

... and of course, part of the reason there are so many is because I was painting one a day during the quarantine. What was I thinking?

Oh, well. I think I've figured out how and where to store them. It's just moving them all that's going to be a pain. I think I'll make it a rule that I can't really set up my studio until all the paintings are either hung on the walls or stored in the closet or basement.

Sigh.

Not feeling raring to go anymore: too much work to be done!