Calling it quits... for now.

Over the past 2 years, I have made a point of creating art in the hopes that one day I might be good enough to go professional as an illustrator. Over the past few weeks, I have come to realize that my interests have changed, and it is becoming more and more of a struggle (mentally, not artistically) to create the art I thought I wanted to do.

For the past 3 years, I have been really wishy washy about what I want to do for a career—art teacher, restauranteur, book store owner, hot dog seller, wedding photographer, start my own magazine, and yes, even looked into starting my own theme park (this just after returning from Disney)!! My intentions are good, but most of my ventures start with the idea of great financial benefits or filling a "need" in my community (I honestly believe a theme park would do well here). That being said, I thankfully do a lot of research on each idea, spend hours looking at websites, reading articles, etc, etc. (hours I could have been doing something more productive) only to realize that I have no business or desire to do any of these things fulltime. And I am adamant about not starting something solely based on the financial light at the end of the tunnel. But, I digress.

One thing I do know is I love being outdoors. While my thumbs are not all that green, I do love gardening. I have had a few vegetable gardens over the years with mixed results, but I plan to learn more to increase my yield. I have three small (1.5 feet tall) oak trees that I, myself, started from acorns I collected. I have gathered about 7 other oak saplings from my yard (acorns that sprouted on the ground after they fell from the tree), along with about 5 red maple saplings I got from another yard, and put them in pots. I have many more acorns I plan to propagate. I am planning to get some FL apple trees and blueberry bushes and create the beginnings of what I hope to be my own orchard/tree farm. Not large mind you, but we have 3 acres here, with plenty of room for such a venture. I have no plans to make this a full time gig; just a hobby that hopefully will pay for itself over the years. (Heck, I won't see any "fruits" of my labor for about 5 years, so this definitely ain't about the cash!)

Another venture I am seeing come to fruition is my online comic strip. Like the orchard, I have been wanting to create a comic strip for many, many years. I have a title, the characters drawn, and the basic story behind each. I feel really good about it. Check back here in the coming weeks and I will post a link to the new site.

As far as this blog goes, I will keep it online for a while longer, perhaps taking it down eventually. I do plan to start a new blog more on the lines of personal stories and commentaries.

Thank you to all who have visited over the years. It was a joy to have met each of you. I wish each of you continued success. God bless!