The Artist's Way

I've started doing "The Artist's Way". I did my first morning pages today, although I didn't exactly do them right when I woke up. I was staying over at Josef's, so I had to pack up my things and get from his place to mine before I could work on them. But I did it! Doing it all by hand actually really hurt, but I guess that's just the way it goes.

I've been trying to figure out which of the exercises to do. You're supposed to try to do one every day (which doesn't wind up being all of them, but that's okay), specifically the ones that you're either excited about or resistant to.

The only two I'm really liking for this week are "Imaginary Lives: If you had five other lives to lead, what would you do in each of them?.. Whatever occurs to you, jot it down. Do not over think this exercise. The point of these lives is to have fun in them--more fun than you might be having in this one. Look over your list and select one. Then do it this week." and "Take your artist for a walk, the two of you. A brisk, 20 minute walk can dramatically alter consciousness."

I don't know if it's that I'm resistant to the rest, or that I just don't know if I can DO the rest of them. All of the other questions have to do with your past, most specifically your childhood. Well, I have a really hard time remembering much of my past. As Josef put it (and I am paraphrasing here) "It's as though your memories are not your own; as though you are remembering something that happened to someone else, so it's had to recall." That's how I usually feel about my past. I don't know why. I suppose it's because I spend so much time thinking of the possible future, that I don't really dwell much on the past. And I suppose because I don't think of it much, so it's not remembered as well as it could be.

So I think I will start with those two and then see where I go. I wonder if I can do them on the computer, or if I have to write them by hand too. I really hope that's not the case.

Anyway, off to chick flicks and then "Imaginary Lives".

Woot.