What's the Best Journal to Use?

I was on the tanglepattern.com website and ended up responding to an article about papers and pens.  I wrote so much that it seemed more like a blog entry, and I decided to include it here. Writing my thoughts made me realize that I need to get back to including my doodles, collages, figurework, etc. in my blog on a daily basis.  Practice is the doorway to personal magic.  Anyway, here's my response...
There are two differnt notebooks/journals that I use. The first is Miquelrius. It’s the Spanish version of Moleskine. The second is the GIANT JOURNNAL made by Michael Roger Press.


The Miquelrius that I use as a grid. It’s looks like it’s glued, but it opens fairly flat. When opened to a full spread, the journal is a little smaller than a full sheet of paper. The pages are thin, however the journal has 400 pages. I love this. I’m a writer, composer, and visual artist. I tend to be a magpie and use my journals as catch-alls. The small size lets me carry it everywhere.

The GIANT JOURNAL is spiral bound. It’s pages are 5.5″ x 8.5″. It comes lined or blank. The paper is typical sketchbook paper. It’s selling point–500 pages! The drawback is because the paper is thicker, the journal dimension a little bigger, and the addition of 100 more pages; it’s harder to carry in my purse. (Notice that I didn’t say impossible.)

If I could only have one I’d get the Miquelrius. I originally got it as a replacement for my GIANT JOURNAL. Barnes and Noble were out of the big one and didn’t know when another shipment was coming in. Apparently, I was one of a select few who appreciated its size. The Miquelrius came closer with the page count, so I decided to try it. Having that many pages and being able to fit it in my purse make it my number one choice. I get around the thin paper by glueing in a blank behind my tangle page. Then I use that sturdier blank page as a collage/gluebook page. When I’m in a waiting room or watching TV, I sometimes go back and tangle in the nooks and crannies of those pages. I like the layered effect.

Life May Now Begin Again!

Whew! Work is done, (for the moment). I don't start working summer school until July 6th (prep day) and then it's July 9th thru August 6th. At least it's half a day.

My drawing class ends next Thursday, June 29th. I can't believe how HARD it was! I also can't believe how much my drawing has improved. I still have an art history research paper to write for that class (it's due next Tuesday), and I still have that Special Ed final hanging over my head! I really need to get that done.

I've decided that I'm going to start knitting some socks on July 1st. I can finally join the Six Sox Knit-A-Long for the last month. By the end of next week, I should be done with the Penelope Blouse--that's one the needles now. I really want to try those Sidewinder Socks. They look like a lot of fun. I'm seeing them every! Now I just need to find the right yarn. I really should use something I have in the stash!

On the weight front, I've joined Weight Watchers! I've lost 4.6 pounds so far! Yeah me! You'd think that was enough, but you know me. I'm going to the gold. I'm going to...

COMPETE IN FITNESS COMPETITIONS!

Yes, I am crazy. My first big goal is to go from the 151 that I weigh now, down to 125 which will be my pre-contest weight. That's definitely a year-long project. Don't worry, I'm doing this healthy--eating right, exercise, and a lot of water. A 1/2 pound a week is slow enough so that this is PERMANENT weight loss.

If that wasn't enough, I still have to do my writing, my music, and some type of art every day. What's the saying, 21 days makes a habit? Well day is more than half done and I've got to leave for class in an hour, but tomorrow... WATCH OUT!

Really, I'm doin' it this time. Don't look at me that way!

I'm On a Roll!

I got another doodle done before I fell asleep AT 7:00PM! I must have been really, REALLY tired. I obviously needed the sleep.

Create-A-Thing-A-Day!

Well, even though I'm not doing so well of the 1,000 Club, I've added yet another creative thing to my plate. The Creative Act Blog is doing a Create-A-Thing-A-Day Challenge, and of course I'm going to attempt it.

My theme this week is doodling. I'm trying to get back into drawing. Unfortunately I don't have a digital camera so I can't take a picture of my art work (By the way, the thing you create can be any medium--baking, knitting, writing, drawing, are only a few of the ways you can express yourself.)

But you know me, I'll be honest about stuff like this. (Like admitting that I haven't even written one word, let only 1,000 a day--but that's another story.)

Today I have doodled. It helped my mind wander. I think this is a good thing.