more food for thought

a few of my current inspirations and imaginations

A page from a very old book called The Sentiment of Flowers and a page of scrap booking paper recently purchased at Michael's are a few of my current inspirations and imaginations. My desk (and office) is a wreck this early morning - that's the thing about working with collage, your work area can very quickly look like a bomb went off (although a very beautiful bomb of colour and pattern, texture and ephemera). So often I have to ask Miss D who's almost always snoozing in her well padded den at my feet Did you see that tiny piece of ocean map that I just cut out ? Sigh.

We drank our coffee in darkness this early morning, tucked in under the covers, a favourite past time. A nearly full moon shining in on us (and Oliver - who have I mentioned lately is the absolute best ! cat ! ever !). We listen to the sounds of crows, seagulls, a loon* far off in the distance, a few boats leaving the harbour beginning their day and that August steady humming chorus of crickets - constant and beautiful, the air wafting in our wide open windows feeling fresh and just a bit cooler this morning. September is indeed on it's way.

Well my comments remain open this morning and thank you all for your opinions, commiserations and thoughts. It's funny I'd never thought of simply deleting a comment that felt not helpful, hurtful or just plain boorish. I can be so black & white about things - comments off or comments on. I am still questioning the idea of comments on this blog. I don't have them on my portfolio blog and as I grow more confident with this medium I wonder if they can do me more harm then good. Yes it's very true, I have built and continue to grow and nurture an amazing community of friends and kindred spirits and I do email back and forth with almost all of those women - some more often than others. I'm not really worried about losing that community.

A reminder to all of us and in all areas of our lives is simply Be nice, or Be quiet. Take a moment before you speak to consider how your words might land and ask are they adding anything?

I received an email yesterday from a fellow creative blogger, her thoughts on the topic

As much as I love comments, they are a double edged sword, I feel hurt if there are none and then sometimes I just don't "get" the comments that are left and then other times I feel bad for not responding to comments, feel like I should. It would sure lighten the load to not have comments to worry about and people would not feel obligated to leave them.

I think that yes, if someone is moved enough, has something to say and wants to contact me they will send an email.

and Kelly Rae Roberts has this to say about closing the comments on her own blog

It’s a personal choice I made when I began to feel like I was writing less and less for my creative + personal expression and more and more for an audience. For me, keeping the comments closed is the only way I know how to keep my writing personal, vulnerable, and purposeful to my creative journey.

I, like many of us who blog, am deeply affected by that darn comment section - by the things said (even more by the things not said), and very often crushed, a little, by the absence of comments. If you've been hanging out here at 29 Black Street awhile you'll know I manage to find plenty to worry about without adding Why are there no comments today ? or I wonder what she meant by that ? to my ever growing pile of frets. By not having comments - all those niggling questions disappear and my blog might grow into something else. Still pondering ... out loud.

* the darn loon called out to me Hey ! watch out all Susan's hopes, dreams and wishes ;-)