Saturday, June 22, 2019

Hotel Room Studio

I just realized that maybe an interesting way to document this move is to show my mobile studio set up in each new location along the way.  Surely that would be more fun than to read me go on and on about how painful this move is for me.  I think so...

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Today was the day that we left our home for the last 4 years.  By that I mean the actual house we have lived in.  It's been a long, painful, process that really got going 3 weeks ago when the first round of movers came and took...  almost everything.  It was then that I set up the Closet Studio

I did a bunch of medallion prep in the days to follow, a bit of painting, and got also got back to work on an overdue order for four leather halters - the last of a very large commission from a wonderful customer.  I've been making a wide variety of colorful halters for her, spread out over the last several months, then invoicing and sending them out a few at a time. 

A few days ago, another round of movers came.  To prepare for them, I packed my two suitcases that I'll take on the flight - one intending to be clothes, the other horses and supplies (though several horses and supplies leaked over into the clothes bag...).  Once I made my final, final selections - to include a flat rate box full of things to mail to meet us in PA when we get there - the rest of what I'd hung onto went at that time.  This was the "express" shipment, which is supposed to reach its destination, our new location, much sooner than the three or four months that the main shipment will take.

More road bumps, a battle with the housing office, many tears, some stress, a side of rage later, and this afternoon we left our house to move into the TLF (temporary lodging facitilies).  It is basically a 2 bedroom apartment with everything that two people, a dog, and a cat, who are all living out of a few suitcases, could ever need. 

Shortly after we hauled our belongings, groceries, pets and their paraphernalia in, we started unpacking for the 10 days or so that we'll call this place home, before we fly out. 

This led to me asking Jeff if he wanted to put anything in the other bedroom.  No?  Okay, well here's my Hotel Room Studio:


This is the "horse bag" with the awesome two tote setup that I had discovered after buying these bags for BreyerWest two years ago.


I've had it packed with horses and medallions on the left, pencil cases full of projects and supplies on the right.  In the "test run" from the house to here, everything survived with no damage.  Hopefully the flights will have the same outcome.


"Bom" (Chewie) getting some air from his personal pencil case.  He fits in there perfectly, it's his own little armored box. 


Antar and Wind In Her Hair, along with a selection of bodies that made the cut and stayed through the second round of movers.


ALL my medallions.  They are all at least primed, most prepped, a few have basecoats started.


Reckless and his girls.  ;-)  Behind them are some parts of the STAGECOACH.  I decided to send most of that with the express shipment, but pulled out the parts and tools to finish the chassis.  That's my goal for September.


The nightstand has been reassigned as a painting supply station.  I sent all of my paints out in the flat rate box, bound for PA, except for black and white - for some more basic medallion base coating.  Been burning through the primer and I'm hoping to use up most of the rest of this before we leave here.


Finally, this is my actual work station, on the dining table.  Jeff and I have set out a shared work area again; he's editing videos from his r/c planes and drones over there on the other side while I work on tack tonight.


One more picture, my studio room for the last four years, empty.


Farewell, Japan studio, I will miss you and especially the view of the huge cherry tree outside.  They have been doing a massive construction project on the building for the last month, so it is wrapped in scaffolding and netting.  I didn't get a last good look at "my" tree. 


Wednesday, June 5, 2019

Closet Studio

What's this?  A blog post???  Yeah!

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Well...  today (and yesterday) was (were) the day(s).

The movers came and took ALL of our stuff. 

Almost.

I've been chronicling the "impending doom" on my Facebook page.  For example: how - this time - I decided to pack ALL of my horses myself, after what happened on the way here.  I've added MOAR horses to the herd while here, some of them expensive (for me).  Though I'm quite sure the Japanese movers would have taken much more care with them (we've had multiple people tell us that we will have nothing missing or broken after leaving Japan and I fully believe that).  The Japanese inspector who stopped by early also assured us that everything would be carefully wrapped in paper.  As much respect as the Japanese people have for others and their belongings, again, I totally believe that.  However, in the interest of saving time for them, I still decided to wrap all of the horses myself. 

After all of the pony packing, the last two days were spent split between hanging out in the backyard with Jeff, Joey, and Tealight (trying to stay out of the way of the moving crew), and running to get food for the crew.  That's not something that's required, but most people do it.  We had donuts for breakfast, pizza for lunch the first day, chicken today, with lots of water and other drinks.  I had fun playing hostess.

The few days before they arrived were spent in a flurry of purging trash, scrap wood from the laser business, and so on.  I also gave MUCH thought to what I wanted to keep back to prepare for...  The Jennifer Show

Yes, I am entered!  I've also got an AirBnB booked for a whole week there!  I'm super excited and am using the show as a carrot on a stick to leave Japan.  I really, really don't want to leave and I've been struggling with that - a lot.  But seeing my boy Bo again and TJS are what I'm looking forward to.  We were originally supposed to leave Japan in September of this year, which had me dismayed due to my long game plan to enter TJS.  So now, we are leaving in early July which means losing a couple of months here, but the show is a GO.

I gave a ridiculous amount of thought to what I might want to work on over the next three months until I'm likely to see everything else again.  Typical for me (ugh), though I've been planning to enter for THREE years now, I'm not ready.  Let's be honest, I never would be.  I didn't want to bite off more than I could do (another of my specialties?) but there is a LOT I'd like to do:

*  Make MOAR custom horses

*  Paint more of my Artist Resins, since NaMoPaiMo has helped me end my resin painting fears

*  Oh, and, show performance for the first time - with tack/props that I've made...

(sigh)

I made my final selections, piled them in one of our bathrooms (the "safe" place from the movers) and waited out the last two days of pure CHAOS.

Just now, I finished setting up my new Closet Studio.

Behold!



I've kept back:

Top shelf: my best (old) Stablemate customs (in the white boxes on the left) along with Reckless (of course) my costume model PAM, a CollectA, and Little Bit Arabian. 

Middle shelf: Wind In Her Hair (NaMoPaiMo 2019), Antar (NaMoPaiMo 2017), Bom Bidi Bom (NaMoPaiMo 2018), Bolya (OF), Ashley (custom CAM), and PreFlight (was supposed to be my MEPSA makeover horse this year...) several Classic and SM bodies - plastic and resin.

I've also kept some essential supplies, tools, and references to work on: custom horses, Arabian costumes, tack, and the STAGECOACH.

I'm happy with how my "mini studio" came together and I'm hoping that the next few weeks until we leave will be productive!

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Oh...  in other (related?) news...  I am currently being evaluated for...  ADHD.  Would any of my readers think I have it?  Ha...  It's another story (another post?), but I'm hopeful that these next few weeks will see some changes.  I don't have the distractions of all of the rest of our "stuff" here.  The laser is gone, so no business tasks to be done there..  AND if I do end up going on some sort of meds, I've been told they could give me "energy and focus".  Um, wow...  if that actually happens, things could get very interesting.  I'm not in a rush to get on pills, but I am tired of feeling like I'm spinning my wheels - in 20 different directions all the time.  The doctor I spoke with said it sounds like this has really been holding me back and I'm capable of so much more.  I almost started crying.

We'll see.

That's the latest!  I'm hoping to blog a bit more in the coming months.  Surely more often than once every 4 months? 

Whew, if you made it this far: Thanks for reading.  *hugs*