A GUITAR CENTER ADVENTURE…..

Monday, February 24, 2014

A GUITAR CENTER ADVENTURE…..

…..It started out simple enough….I met Tomiko at mom’s and was greeted with tulips that will bloom shortly. Love the boots!

Off we went to Guitar Center on Sunset Blvd. to pick up son Alex’s guitar that had been repaired.

Inspection.

Everything looked O.K.

With the guitar safely in the car we headed back for some quality browsing. Let’s go for the gold! (Or is that Platinum?)

This one is so expensive because of all the handwork.

At this point, a man walked out of a little room that we suspected had treasures inside. He looked at us and said, “Would you like a five minute education on guitars?”

It turned out he was from Boston, in charge of marketing for Bose & working in L.A. on a video shoot. The funny thing is that he has no connection with Guitar Center and was there as a customer. Eric showed us around…. pointing to each guitar and telling us how it was made, it’s history and so much more information I confess I went into overload. He knows absolutely EVERYTHING about guitars!

Now how often does something like that happen?

As we were leaving this young fellow gave us a mini concert…

On to the ArcLight Hollywood at Sunset and Vine to catch the 4:40 ‘The Monuments Men’. I know, it got a terrible review in the ‘L.A. Times’ and not much better in the ‘New York Times’ but we thoroughly enjoyed it and hey….George Clooney! The large BUTTERED popcorn was great too!

Next stop, ‘Little Dom’s’ on Hillhurst. Always packed, always delicious. The popcorn did us in so we settled on burgers (delicious) with arugula & parmesan salads. Oh, I guess I should mention the gelato sundae with fudge sauce and whipped cream. We’re soooo bad.

Bye for now!

Have a great week!

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Introduction

There is no avoiding the pull of the internet, the blogs, the YouTube imaginings. It's as if we're all 'On the Road' with Jack Kerouac each in our own world of meanderings. When we tell someone to 'get a life' it might be a bit difficult when you're dragged into other people's 24/7.

I've come to realize two foundational principals, there are no accidents and everyone has a purpose. More and more I'm desiring everyone to come into a full realization of their purpose as we all find our way on this little jewel of a planet.

For me, as a professional 'Western style artist', I stumbled into Chinese Brush Painting after a trip in 1980 to Monet's home/garden. Seeing all of his collection of Japanese woodblock prints was an ahh haa moment for me and when I returned to the States I started painting in the Chinese manner and never looked back. The first year was extremely painful for me as I felt that I should be able to master the technique since I was a 'trained' artist. Not a chance ... that just gets in your way.

Now, after teaching close to 3,000 students and having my book 'The Ch'i of the Brush' published by Watson Guptill, I can say that every one of my students does better their first day than I did my first year! Why? Because I insist that they leave their critical parent outside and just enjoy the journey, respecting the work that they do. I never let anyone throw anything away because that just ingrains frustration and defeat.

We really only begin to learn when we stop and figure out how to 'save' a painting. It works every time.I am so proud of my students, their receptivity and eagerness to express themselves is a continuing blessing for me.So, back to finding your purpose. Perhaps it starts with realizing 'it's not about me'. It so easy to want our needs met and to filter everything thru this attitude. When we realize that we're here to be of benefit to every life that we touch the universe really provides the ways and means.

The best part is that it's really exciting to not have yourself on your mind all the time!I'm re-reading a wonderful book about authenticity and in my next meandering I'll tell you about it. In the meantime I'd love to hear about your journey and am here to answer any and all questions about Chinese Brush Painting.