Heads up: In the following post, I get more personal and political than usual. It wasn't planned; when I sat down to start writing, it all just came rushing out. I thought about deleting or softening the message (which is why this is not going out until March,) but I decided in the end that if I can't be my authentic self here in my own blog, then this is just a marketing tool, and I don't have any interest in selling out my principles in order to make a few bucks. I also can't ignore the fact that the U.S. is no longer a functioning democracy. So, with that, here's my post for February.
To say it's been quite a month is such an understatement I have to laugh. Watching a billionaire buy himself a president - a Mussolini wannabe - and then rampage through our federal agencies like a lunatic with a chainsaw has been enraging to say the least, and that's not even 1/10th of the dangerous absurdity of the MAGA takeover of the U.S. government. More of us need to speak up and do something to return this current oligarchy back to a democracy and then make it a better democracy for all Americans. I've realized calling my elected representatives and boycotting businesses that support the MAGA agenda just isn't enough, so I've decided to donate all proceeds from the sale of "My Little Chickadee" to Indivisible.
Indivisible's grassroots organization, their alliance with groups like the Working Families Party and MoveOn, and their focus on action rather than talk has given me hope that we CAN turn this around.
Working in the studio on a new series of prints I'm currently calling "The Alder Gang" has been such a welcome break from the relentlessly bad news. That and long walks in the woods and along the sea, reading and drawing, visiting with friends, and updates from my fella as he backpacks his way through Patagonia have helped me. I hope you have also been able to rest and find solace and light in these troubling times. Here's a little chestnut-backed chickadee, the first print in my new series, to make you smile. I wish you well.
