even if all we manage to carve out is one special bookshelf
and a windowsill that is ours. (My study has a window shelf
of paperweights and seashells.) Remember that your artist is
a youngster and youngsters like things that are “mine.” My
chair. My book. My pillow.
Designating a few things special and yours alone can go a
long way toward making you feel pampered. Chinatown
anywhere offers a beautiful teacup and saucer for under five
dollars. Secondhand stores often have one-of-a-kind china
plates that make an afternoon snack a more creative
experience.
Much of what we do in a creative recovery may seem
silly. Silly is a defense our Wet Blanket adult uses to squelch
our artist child. Beware of silly as a word you toss at
yourself. Yes, artist dates are silly—that’s the whole point.
Creativity lives in paradox: serious art is born from
serious play.

COUNTING, AN EXERCISE

For the next week you will be discovering how you spend
your money. Buy a small pocket notepad and write down
every nickel you spend. It doesn’t matter what it is for, how
tiny the purchase, how petty the amount. Petty cash is still
cash.
Each day, date a page and count—what you bought, what