Here comes the "doing."

Hi there, dear readers...it's been a minute...actually over a year long minute. Should I try and summarize the details of all that occurred during that time frame or start a new conversation? Let's go with a new conversation but with a run down on my current stats haha...

Amy, The Ro Fo Sho -

 * Still battling depression of course...it's simply a part of my life, always present. You've heard it from me countless times and it's the same deal - living through the ups and downs on the roller coaster ride of mental illness.

 * My art and creating have gradually lost momentum and I've been working on revving it back up. A year ago I wrote about getting ready to start selling my art and that never happened. Here I am today saying I'm working on making it happen again...hoping I succeed with my intentions this time.

 * The biggest update in my life is a new job!!! Much happier where I am and beyond thankful to not be in the chain store retail industry!

 * I'm also dating and enjoying my time with someone, but those details are not for sharing at this time.

So! What's the point in me attempting to write and share once more after such a long absence? 2 reasons:

1. Depression. The conversation is still going, but I've noticed some changes in how the topic is being shared and discussed. I feel the need to jump back in because I'm a little concerned with some of these changes. I don't know if "concerned" is even the right word...I'll try and better explain what I mean in the near future.

2. Art. I've been talking about it for too long...seriously...years. I have to stop talking and start doing. So here comes the doing...

This week and next (and maybe the following) I will be ordering some packaging materials for my original art. I will be organizing and pricing as well as researching the best process for getting prints available for purchase in addition to my original creations. Then, I will start sharing items for sale! Whoo hoo! No one has expressed any interest in buying my art, but that's ok...I will still try.

Thanks for sticking with me, lovelies.

Amy Ro Fo Sho

Three New Drawings and A Kakashi Dog Story

Hello, dear readers! Here are some things I've been thinking about:

* What is the appeal of watching "un-boxing" videos? I can understand when it comes to subscription type boxes where people may want an idea of the type of products they could be receiving. But when a person sits down with his or her purchases and starts a video like they're presenting some treasure to the world, I can't help but wonder, "Why?" Original art or a collector's item or something rare and unusual would be interesting. Sharing a new designer purse or an expensive piece of jewelry or brand name shoes feels like showing off in my opinion. To each their own I suppose. If you enjoy that sort of thing, power to ya!

* I mentioned in my last post an interest in dating again. A few days after I wrote that, I went on a date! It was fun and awesome and we clicked; I felt like there was hope in the universe again for women like me not wrapped up in this digital, impersonal, and self absorbed world we live in! But the date was too premature for him...he is still going through his divorce and it's too soon for him...I totally respect and understand that. Still. A big whomp whomp sad trumpet for me. I've been thinking about dating apps...something I felt strongly about avoiding...but I've been considering it now in an attempt to open my mind to all possibilities. Yay or nay?

* Pretty sure I'm about to jump into trying to sell my art. I'm not ready in that I don't have everything I need to operate like I want...such as mat boards and archival sleeves and such...but my finances are incredibly terrible with no relief in sight and I don't have time for piddly little here and there solutions soooo...it's time to go big or go home.......and hopefully don't end up even more broke. That's not grammatically correct is it? Flows better that way.

* Finding my new groove with my art finally. However, my new technique appears to be starting multiple drawings at once...we'll see how that goes...I'll share the current creations below in a sec.

* Kakashi was sick for a couple of days and I was a mess. I had a nightmare probably more than a year ago that I was walking him and he was lagging behind. It was completely unlike him and when he abruptly stopped and laid down, I immediately burst into tears knowing that something was terribly wrong. It broke my heart and even after waking I couldn't shake the loss; my then husband pretty much made fun of me for it; Kakashi was only ever a dog to him. Anyway! He started acting strangely a couple of evenings ago, and when I went to walk him for the last time that night, he was lagging behind and eventually stopped and laid down...just like in the bad dream. I got him up and back home and quickly started praying and crying...the crying turned into sobbing and the praying turned into pleading. This may sound overly dramatic, but I believe anyone who truly loves their pets like family will understand. A visit to the vet and some additions to his daily meals plus pain medicine has reset him and he's back to his happy self. I do believe there was some God work in there too...because it seemed much worse leaving the vet without any clear answers.

So! I'll leave y'all with the 3 drawings I have going and a little snapshot of Kakashi and me working on this blog entry...

Hugs and love, my lovelies!
The Ro Fo Sho

Depression, Divorce, Discovery

Why?! I can't go to sleep at night or nap during the day without thinking about all of the things I want to write about and how I would write about these things; and then I get in front of my computer screen, and all of the things simply vanish. Where are the things, brain?! This is frustrating. Maybe it's because I don't write as often as I should or make lists as compulsively as I once did; I don't know. Let's go with a bullet type list of sorts and see how it evolves.

* I am so broke. I haven't been this financially unstable in years. It's scary, and I don't see myself getting ahead of it for a very very...very long time.

* I want to share more about the end of my 11 years relationship (including 6 years married) with my ex husband. I desperately need closure or something.

* My ex husband stopped loving me and caring for me around the end of 2014, and recently I've been wondering if he just wasn't attracted to me anymore. That being said, will another man find me attractive in this new single life?

* Single life at 35 after the end of a more than decade long relationship is crazy. Men are weird. I have received more pictures of penises in the the last couple of months than I have in my whole life. And do people even date anymore?! I just want to go on freakin' flippin' date! I don't want to see erections at this stage of the single scene! Is that too much to ask for?

* I plan on writing more about this next chapter of my life under the title, "Depression, Divorce, Discovery."

Depression began altering my life more than 20 years ago and has been a continuous topic here in this little corner of the internet world since the beginning. Divorce has been the most recent life changing event of course which is challenging enough on it's own; but as a woman with mental illness, there were and sometimes still are several moments where I had and have wondered how on earth I will ever fully get on the other side of this event. Discovery. Talk about discovery holy moly! This is a brand new journey, dear readers, and I have so much more to share.

Hugs and love, my lovelies!

Still here,
The Ro Fo Sho

Express the Mess

I keep finding myself wanting to write and share and try to express the mess that's in my head. It feels as though there is too much junk, however, and I'm not sure where to start. So what follows may be a little bit of a free write I suppose...I guess we'll see how it goes.

I'm angry most of the time but mostly when I'm in bed ready to fall asleep for the night or sometimes during the day when I can catch a nap. Moving on since my divorce has been the most challenging thing in my life. I want to yell and scream at my ex husband and shake him and get him to say the things I feel like I need to hear for closure or validation or something! Damn it I'm not the only one who screwed up in our marriage...but I'm also the only one who ever tried fighting to make it work. I spent years asking him what I needed to do to make him love me and want me like he use to...I told him to be be honest and to let me go if it was what he wanted...I explained that it felt like he was pushing me away on purpose. He made me feel like I was crazy. And only now that it's over and I've witnessed how easily he has recovered and started living the life he stopped wanting to live with me, I realize that I wasn't crazy...I was right. He didn't want me anymore. I felt it in the stiff hugs he gave me and the quick emotionless kisses...his eyes would stay open and directed at the television screen. He laughed and smiled with his teeth and spent hours joyfully gaming while my jokes and silliness and attempts to be playful with him only earned me eye rolls, annoyance, and a dismissive attitude. If I haven't yet plainly said it, I'll say it now; yes, I cheated. I screwed up and I kept it a secret. I was drunk, sick, and lonely; and I wanted to feel wanted and I know those are only excuses and they don't and didn't mean anything when the truth was revealed. But lately I've been thinking of "for better or for worse, in sickness and in health..." I broke a vow...but so did he...and he did it over and over and over again. I kept trying to make our relationship work. When my faults were brought to light, however, I didn't have the energy to fight anymore. I had been fighting a losing battle even before my errors came into play. I guess I want him to admit that he broke my heart for years before I broke his. In the end, I lost friendships and family...I lost my husband who had remained my best friend even when I stopped being his. I'm wondering when I'll stop replaying all of this in my head...when will I run out of tears and when will I forgive my ex as well as myself.

He said he would help me after the divorce and that he understood it would be difficult for me to get back on my feet. I'm working so hard and not getting ahead; it's like a losing battle. So many people told me to ask for alimony and that I shouldn't trust that he would keep his word. I had faith in him and now I know I shouldn't have. He bought a house even though he was always telling me that it was something we wouldn't be able to do for years. He spends time away from the TV screen even thought it seemed to be the only thing that made him truly happy during our time together. You know, he even tried sushi after years and years of refusing to try it with me. More than one person admitted that he seemed depressed spending time with me and that he was a happier person after he decided to divorce me. I'm not sharing this to say it isn't fair; I'm happy for him...but I can't help but wonder...could we both have ended up happier if we had ended our relationship years before the heartache?

Thanks for listening.

Hugs and love, my lovelies.

Still surviving,
Amy

Divoce and what happens next...

Okay, dear readers, here comes the next chapter for The Ro Fo Sho! Long story short, my marriage of six and a half years has ended in divorce and I have moved back to Oklahoma. Out of respect for my ex-husband, I will not share the details of what happened except to say that we both failed each other, but that my failures were the ones that we could not recover from. It was an emotionally challenging time for a few months, and I have come a very long way. Over time I will share more about the grieving process for our relationship and how everything that took place affected my depression and was affected by my depression. I did end up in a mental health resource center for a couple of days, and it was an intense eye opening experience that will be very important for me to share about with you all in the future. I'm not sure who might read this, but I understand that I have lost other relationships in my divorce and I realize more people will inevitably exit from my life. Please know that I regret my actions which pushed my ex away and that I never meant to hurt anyone. In my defense, I know I was a good wife and I did the best I possibly could; I gave all of my love and all of my self and energy to try and make our marriage a success. In the end, I am completely confident in saying that I worked hard at our relationship and gave everything that I could. I hope that he and I can someday be friends, but who knows? He seems quite a bit happier without me, and I only wish the very best for him. I'm doing better myself, and I am optimistic for my future and this next chapter. Thank you to everyone who has stuck and will continue to stick with me...and apologies to anyone I let down. My hope is that all of us will continue to be civil, mature, and respectful towards one another. The only way to go from here is forward.

Hugs and love, my lovelies!

Still here,
Amy

"Night Sky"

by Amy

The Ro Fo Sho Art and Photography

Multi Part Story of The Ro Fo Sho Part 1

Yesterday sucked. My mama shared some concerning news from home and I had to work at my normal person job. I'll write more about the family worries at another time when I have more information. Normal person job needs no other mention.

Today I would like to get some photos taken of my new art and organize it all...ones I want to share/sell, ones I want to keep, ones I have no idea if anyone will like except for me...that type of organization. I need to have a day where I focus on the business side of The Ro Fo Sho Art and Photography. My friend, Stephany, took me out for lunch the other afternoon and I was telling her how I wish I could just focus on the creative process and have someone else manage the practical side, and she said she would love to do that for me someday! In truth, I've been imagining her as a business partner for some time now, so the idea sounds great to me! It will take some time to get to that point I'm afraid...a few have shown interest in my art, but I have no idea yet how well it will be received once it's really out there for all the world to see...which brings me to my next point...

I've loved art since I was a little girl...I can't remember a time when I wasn't drawing. My very first dream was to be an artist, but, as I've said before, I also realized at a young age that it wasn't exactly a guaranteed paycheck. Yes, I know children aren't necessarily supposed to worry about such matters, but I was different dang it. That is all I will say about that for now. Moving on! Art simply stayed a hobby for years and years. I didn't take the advanced classes in school and I never did perfect any skills. I watched and admired my friends progression and the creations they produced; they wouldn't even call me an artist! They were extremely talented in my eyes, so it never occurred to me that I might someday have a place in the art world.

In college I started developing my own style. It began here...

I grabbed my sketch book and oil pastels and started scribbling...I call this one "The Beginning," because it was the very first time I let my emotions direct the drawing...I let the images in my head fall to the paper as naturally as they possibly could. This was done in 2002 I believe...holy crap...15 years ago!

Unfortunately, my train of thought will have to take a pause for a bit...normal person job...ugh...had to mention it again. This may turn into a multi part story, dear readers, so please stay tuned...

Before I sign off, here's a selfie as I've composed this for you lovely people:

The internet world seems to respond better to selfies. Yes, there may be banana nut bread in my teeth.

Have a great Friday, y'all! I'll be doing the normal person job all weekend and try and continue this train of thought whenever I can!

Hugs and love, my lovelies!

Ro Fo Sho out!
Amy

Singing with The Judds Instead of Cleaning House...

My favorite days start with my record player, coffee or tea, and sunshine...days where I don't have to be at work until later and I can be lazy and thoughtful in the quiet time when my husband is at work (he has a loud but lovable presence, y'all). I need to be more productive during this time, however, and that's not always the case. I'll usually tidy a bit around the house, but the housewife thing is really not one of my strengths. My ideal productivity would include writing and creating! But...here I've sat for a good ten minutes or so after writing that last sentence just singing along with The Judds on vinyl and snapping photos with my phone to share in this little corner of the internet world! So! Now I need to walk my dog and start getting ready for work, y'all! But first!

Depression update: I'm taking 40 mg of Prozac every morning, and that's it. I stopped taking the Buspar mainly because I can't eat grapefruit while taking it; and that's not working for me anymore; I miss my grapefruit, people!!! The days are up and down as usual, but I've been getting more sunshine, and that makes an enormous different in my mood! My primary thought with regards to mental health is that sometimes the medicines and the therapy simply don't work anymore, and the best way to start feeling better is to just be sick of it...flex those brain muscles and fight around those chemical imbalances and or deficiencies...seriously...adopt the "fuck this shit" attitude! Granted it has taken me 20 years to get here, but maybe if I talk more about it, it won't take so long for others to start improving. And you know what? Over the past couple of years I've started seeing more and more people talking openly about their struggles with mental health, and obviously I think this is incredibly important. My message for a long time has been, "keep the conversation going!" The hashtag is #stigmafree and I love it!

Dang it! I'm on a cognitive roll and want to keep going, but my dog and getting ready for work are on a time limit now. Damn.

Anyway! I have some art to share, but it will have to wait. Hope everyone has a great week!

Hugs and love, my lovelies!

Singing all the time!
Amy