Saturday, April 4, 2009

Getting Past Stuck

We all struggle at one time or another with plain old ordinary routine -- the "oh, so dailies." Even though I am very passionate about creativity, I have found myself struggling with too much routine lately. When you get stuck, what do you do?

I had to ask myself that yesterday. My husband and I work together and drive to and from work together. We've been doing that now for a little over two years. Working full time itself can sometimes become very routine, but with the same-old-same-old to and from work, I have gotten into a rut! We walk through the door of home in the evening into a very boring and routine pattern -- news, a little dinner, a load of laundry, a little conversation, and bed!

I decided to try to vary what I do when I get home in order to stimulate some creativity. So, yesterday, before I started the grocery-shopping routine (another same-old-same-old), I decided to make the first errand a trip to my local book store. There I browsed through several of my favorite magazines -- ones that in the past have always gotten my creative juices flowing -- like Cloth, Paper, Scissors; Quilting Arts; Inspirations; and Threads. The ideas have been popping ever since!

In fact, this morning, I got up and walked on the treadmill and pushed a few weights to pep up the energy levels. My day has felt much more productive (I got the "routine" stuff out of the way more quickly) -- and here I am enjoying sharing on a new blog. I have gotten out a quilted memory book I started making a while ago and plan to work on it while I watch my grandkids this evening. (I got them new coloring/sticker/activity books, water-washable markers, and crayons to keep them busy and creative as well.)

If I write about what I am thinking in pursuing more creativity on a daily basis, I think it will stimulate me more -- if not others. So, anyone out there want to join me in looking for ways to be more creative every day?