Autumn In The Smokies

As I am into my seventh Autum Season here in Gatlinburg, I can look around and see such wonderous color in the trees. Thankfully we havent had a lot of hard rains or wind, which has allowed the trees to stay in color longer.

I have gone out with the camera a few times and have a Photography Experience Trip set up for tomorrow. I am sure I will fill up a memory card during the workshop and hopefully get a few more works for my gallery sales.

And speaking of Gallery sales, I can say I have been quite pleased with the number of pieces that are out in peoples homes, offices and mancaves that have sold in the last three months that I have been in the Shops at Carousel gardens. Somewhere around 50 to 60 pieces have been sold, but most of those are smaller $12-$21 items, But that still helps me buy more pigments and paper to keep motivated to make new stuff.

It’s amazing the amount of people that flock to the area in October, I am blessed to live here for sure… but then I felt blessed to have live in Florida along the coast and near the Space Center. In fact there are so many places on earth that would be wonderfully beautiful places to live.

As winter approaches, I am on a mission to make this a very enjoyable time in life for me. I am not concerned that I am up in years and live alone with cats and struggle sometimes to make ends meet. I am the type of person that looks more at what I do have that yet many may not. Sure I do not have health insurance but I seem to saty fairly healthy anyway. I may not have a retirement savings and don’t get to do a lot of things that require money. But I did get to go to the French West Indies back in February and I am heded to Venice nect June. I feed my boys "Iams" food and I eat a lot of steak, so I would say in some ways, we live like kings.

I feel I am pretty much over and forgiven myself for the crazy ass mistakes i made in May of 2010 and the following crash and burn that happened this past January. And getting through June and July was such a stomach eater. Business was slow and there were not quite so many steaks in the diet and I even had to give the boys "Friskies" a few times.

So as I enjoy the colors of Autumn without being overdrawn at the bank, selling art again and even working in the gallery a couple days a week. I couls steel the phrase "life is good" and apply it right now… But GOD is gooder!