Week 1 of the artist life

I've gone through several stages of adjustment in my first full week of being a full-time artist.

See if any of these remind you of your first day in a job where you make all the rules:

• oh-my-God-what-did-I-do... I think I'll take a nap.

• oh-my-God how much stuff do I really need to move into the studio? (Answer: all of it. Someday.)

• My Schedule's Flexible, How About I... take the kids to all their dental and doctor's appointments in one day?

I haven't touched a brush since I varnished my most recent collages.

But then last night I got a reminder of the possibilities that are opening up, now that I'm a Full-Time Artist. I found out last night I've been accepted into the October Best of the Northwest show!

This is a bigfathairydeal... 200+ artists in a two-day show devoted specifically to fine art and fine craft.

People are There For The Art, as opposed to a people going to a festival where art is just part of the spectacle.

gulp

I'm beyond thrilled... and I'll know some of the other participating artists, like the map painter Lisa Middleton of Great River Arts.

But it's still an adjustment for my whole family, thinking of me as a full-time artist vs. an artist-with-a-day-job. Here's the conversation The Husband and I had when I got the big news:

Me: OhmyGod... [stunned pause] I got into the Best of the Northwest!
The Husband: So that's one of the big shows?
Me: Yeah.
The Husband [imagining me staying up until the wee hours, painting]: So are you gonna have to make more stuff for this show? [and then it hits him] Oh wait: your job is to make more stuff, isn't it?

Yeah. My job is to Make More Stuff.