Hi.
Lots of old crusty chapters are coming to their final unflattering close and it’s freeing me up to do all kinds of what I actually want to do. Hooray!
The first thing I want to tell you about is that I’m starting a new little painting to support a dear friend who is battling an illness. I have met few people on this planet as scrappy as she is (if any). She’s the type of person that takes no help for granted and every dollar is received as a tremendous encouragement. And she for sure will pay it forward.
She has a gofundme campaign set up.
So here’s how my painting giveaway works:
Every $5 you donate counts as one raffle entry
On August 10, I will tally up all the donations and pick a winner
I’ll reach out to that winner to get your mailing info, and ship you that painting!
Leave me a comment once you donate so I can match your donation to your contact info. You can just say “donated.” (Or whatever you want to tell me.)
Here’s what the very start of the painting looks like so far. It’s not much yet but this is to give you an idea of size and color scheme—at the moment. I’ll update you on how it’s looking in my next newsletter.
Sandwiched between art I just want to give a quick update that I put my name and face on a public scathing (aka honest) review of the network of predatory “healers” who subjugated and nearly murdered me. It’s far more than one bad apple. Their whole framework is rotten to the core.
They will certainly see what I wrote, and they know who I am.
Fortunately for me and unfortunately for them, I wasn’t a lone pick-offable sad sack that they could rape for parts with impunity. I am a tough motherfucker with a huge network of awesome people who respect and support me. WHOOPS! Hand caught in the cookie jar. Only took me ~6 years to unwind what they did to me enough to know what to say to get this ball rolling.
Perhaps this is shots fired, from their perspectives. From mine, it’s simply ground that was always rightfully mine, not relinquished. Abusers hate it when people don’t treat their entitlement like God’s law. Boohoo.
They’ll just have to get used to their egos being … not scripture. Like the rest of us actual human beings.
Due to the fact that their only upper hand came from deceit and the fact that I was trusting them to care about the core concept of their jobs like non-idiots, they don’t have the spines, skill, conviction, or resources to retaliate. They already gave it all they got. The best they can do at this point to cover their poopy butts is to try to make good with me.
I’m not waiting around. They’re not the answers to any of my problems. They’re just people who recognize now that it’s a bad look for them to play parasitic roles in my story, being as I’m not actually the deranged and/or powerless nobody they banked on me being.
There’s a lot of collateral damage to my life and relationships which I am beyond ecstatic to get to focus on mending, at last. To the extent that mending is possible.
So thanks for bearing with that arduous catastrophe as my art and my love for my real community carried me through.
And now one more piece of art to show off. I had the joyous privilege of getting to meet some dear friends’ twin boys last month, and to commemorate their family doubling in size I made them a painting inspired by one of my favorite native plants, oregon grape.
Oregon grape is not only medicinal but if you study the finer so-called “spiritual” teachings from the plant world, it’s a plant that can teach a lot about honoring boundaries, and developing strong individuation balanced with healthy interdependence. I could say a lot more about it and one of these days I for sure will. But for now, just enjoy the painting.
I was admiring the spring blooms which popped off like fireworks all over Bellingham earlier this year.
And before I sign off I’m just going to one more time plug my friend’s gofundme.
This is apparently the only way you can get art from me right now: helping my friend or giving birth. ;)
Though I will hint that I do have some exciting ideas brewing for my online store which I am very stoked about. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.
Thanks for reading, and be well.
—Adrien