so this happened

Caithness, Scotland

Late January or early February, my friend Paul Tarlow who owns Helios, a glass studio and Bullseye Glass resource center in Austin, posted on FB about a 9 day residency he and artist Jane Bruce are doing in North Lands Creative Glass in Scotland next year. This is a place that I have been wanting to go to for some time but financially, it hadn't been possible...til now. Or rather since we cashed out our property in the now stupidly valuable inner city neighborhood where we lived and worked for 40 years. So I signed up.

Then 9 days ago, I got an email from Jane. She was inviting me to participate in her 4^th International Artist Symposium and Retreat on the recommendation of my friend Natali (who may or may not be able to participate), 9 days and basically the same dates only this year. No way I could afford both so I had a decision to make and I chose to go this year, not that I think Paul's residency won't be wonderful, which it will be, but I thought the one this year would be more interesting with the international aspect of it (and maybe getting to hang out with Natali) and I knew Paul had a waiting list so it wouldn't be difficult for him to fill my spot.

It's been a little nerve wracking. The fee for the symposium, the air fare, the lodging, and meals sans dinners is going to cost about $4000. I hate spending money, well large sums of money. And I rarely never spend large sums of money without thinking about it hard and long over a long period of time, a habit born of being a working artist living hand to mouth for most of my life, and this, basically, had to be a snap decision for me.

So for the past week of days, I have been busy getting my deposit transferred over from one to the other, making flight reservations (3 flights to get there, three to get back), and getting my passport renewed which doesn't actually expire til August but it needed doing anyway.

my passport photo from 10 years ago

my new passport picture (however, by the time I leave, I'll be sporting my summer hair cut)...I could have looked a little happier I guess.

I still need to secure my lodging while there but I'm working on that, waiting to hear back from a bed and breakfast there.

North Lands Creative Glass is about as far north in Scotland as you can get and even in summer it's wet, windy, and cold. I'll be packing all my winter clothes I guess plus my wind pants and dry shirt from my river guide days. Now that I've made the decision to go I'm trying not to dwell on the cost and I am looking forward to it.

I've never been overseas before.