Florida has two seasons: Sweltering and Hurricane.

You never realize how unprepared and blasé you’ve become until the threat of a honest to goodness hurricane is bounding toward your doorstep. I’ve lived in FL for 27 years. I’ve been through my fair share of “no-name” storms and didn’t think anything of Irma. That is until mid week Sep 6th.

We narrowly escaped but not without our fair share of stress, downed trees and loss of power for a week straight. It was miserable however I’m thankful for our luck and I’ve learned some interesting things:

Fountain pens are the best collectible to have in this situation.

They can easily be thrown into a safe or bag and quickly brought along during an evacuation. Best of all they take up little to no space and don’t rely on electricity!

It’s just stuff.

When given little time to prepare you quickly learn that family – pets especially! – are the only things that matter. The rest is just stuff. Sure there are the essential documents that are always safely stowed away however the first out of the home were our cats. I remember staring at my uranium glass curio thinking – well, worse case scenario: I’ll just start over. It’s very humbling.

Always be prepared. Always have a backup plan.

Life has a way of throwing a curve-ball your way when you’re least expecting it, forcing you into some intense reality checks.

P.S. If you ever need a reason to clean out your home, the threat of a hurricane is an excellent excuse!

Be safe and …“Long live paint!”
~*Twigg*~

Hello my dear friends, followers and fans.

It’s a curious thing, this age group that has grown up with one foot firmly planted within the old school (handwritten correspondence, no internet, etc.) and the other foot precariously treading in the vast ocean of technology that we seemingly can’t live without.  Lately I’ve felt that I’ve been drowning in it.  So what do I do? Hide from it, of course!

It’s been a week since I’ve temporarily disabled my Facebook account and it’s been wonderful.  The ability to focus on the present has increased dramatically.  My thoughts aren’t as scattered and divided.  My focus has improved and I feel more content and at peace.

I should preface all of this with the fact that I have not shunned all technology and social media entirely.  Instagram and Snapchat (I have yet to master this elusive app) are some of the forms of communication still on my radar.  Several years ago while traveling overseas I was without any internet for an entire month!  It was glorious.

Perhaps another week of sans Facebook is in order.  We shall see.  Give it a try and let me know what you think.  Have our lives become so hopelessly entwined within social media outlets that there’s little hope of disentangling ourselves?  How many of you write letters and/or have pen pals?  (FYI – I love my fountain pens and handwritten letters and will continue to hold onto these traditions with all of my soul.)

Be well and…”Long Live Paint!”
~*Twigg*~

Good afternoon everyone!

I hope you’re all having a wonderful Friday and have some great things lined up for the weekend.  It’s that time of year and the evenings have been filled with some spectacular storms.  The thunder rolling through the night air is a most welcome balm to my always racing soul.  That combined with the show of lightening and sunsets have produced some mind-blowing photo opportunities!

Check out these three photos taking around the same time from different locations in the city by different individuals (good friends of mine).  Isn’t it amazing how wonderfully unique yet tied together they are?

Photo credit: Twigg

Photo credit: Eileen S.

Photo credit: Camielle C.

I hope that you enjoy what the world has to offer.  Hold onto the good things; while they may seem few and far between, they are the fuel that keeps our souls going through the darkest of times.

Long live paint!

~*Twigg*~

Hey everyone,

I hope your week is going well.

I’ve just added a “For Sale” page so please check it out!:  https://buerstudio.com/for-sale/  I’ll try and keep it updated as best to my ability.  As always, I am fairly open time-wise for commissions; don’t hesitate to email me:  buerstudio@yahoo.com.

I also have a few promotional armbands available! Please contact me or, best of all…commission/purchase a work and I’ll send some your way.

Thanks and be well!
~*Twigg*~