Artnotes: Accentuate the Positive

“What song are you listening to now?” she asked me.  “Accentuate the Positive” I replied.  A 10-year-old friend, with the same kind of chattering brain as me, would want to know what was going through my mind.  She would then tell me what she was hearing, or thinking.   She was completely unabashed about this phenomenon.  I had always tried to hide it; but she could see through me.

My brain is constantly active.  I’ve tried to meditate a hundred times, but inevitably my imagination breaks through.  The only time I am not thinking is when I am painting, and sometimes cooking.  Reading helps, but it has to be a thoroughly compelling story.  God willing, I fall asleep at night, but I suspect the conveyer belt is still on, because I often get a jam early in the morning and have to unclog it.  With luck, I go back to sleep.

This morning, Harika needed water at 4:18.  She couldn’t make it back to the bedroom, because it was too dark.  Turning on the light, I was immediately wide awake.  I started thinking about artnotes, and why Harika needs water at 4AM, and well, Accentuate the Positive, with Jiminy Cricket.
( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z45EB4TiYz4 ). 

Hundreds of thought nuggets pass me at once.  Most of them fall of the line, but occasionally a piece of gold appears.  Hopefully, I snatch it and register it for future use.    People wonder why I don’t listen to music while I am painting.  I don’t have to; I already have it.  Although, sometimes I’d like to change the station.

Another friend of mine wakes up in the middle of the night.  He refers to it as “intermission”, and uses the time to study, write and correspond.

I accentuate the positive. I think about the best bits of life.  I have been enjoying our open studio in Stimigliano.  Yesterday I had four people come in and talk about art.  I am surprised how many people say, “I used to paint”.