It’s no mistake Art rhymes with Fart – because sometimes it just plain ‘ole stinks.

Visited Mass MoCA this past weekend – and not that the art was bad – it wasn’t.  It is very contemporary as MoCA stands for (museum of contemporary art) and definetly thought-provoking.  But I had a headache when I left and I wasn’t quite sure what I saw.

The place is huge – so there were various galleries, nooks and crannies of exhibits – some extremely large scale, others not so much.  And some of the pieces blew me away in their execution – “how the heck did they create that” was pretty much my constant thought as I wandered through the maze.

How do artists work?  Who bankrolls these projects?  Where does this “vision” come from? 

There are as many types of art as there is ice cream – a flavor for every palette.  There is modern art, baroque art, contemporary art, performance art, visual art, graphic art, magazine art, comic book art…..art, art, art.  Who decides what is art and what isn’t?

The viewer?  The curator?  The artist?

All I know is this.  Art is inspiring.  Sometimes it is magnificent, sometimes it is garbage.  It can transport us, or piss us off.  It is complicated and simple all at the same time.

From cave art to graffiti art – art will always be a part of us.

Yup – more snow…it’s becoming routine here in NYC. 

I fell asleep and woke around 1am this morning, as the winter storm was in full force.  I looked out my window, it was dark and the streets were empty…unusual for this city.  I thought – where do we live?  It seemed more like some strange frozen land out there….

And this is what was left this morning…as the sun rose, I took this picture – snow clinging to my window screen. 

And this one – as I walked to the subway….this is the park next to my apartment – the trees heavy with snow.  So pretty.

When we look through the lens of a camera, or our own eye, we see a particular picture – that is colored by how we see the world.  A photographer can capture something you or I would’ve never seen or “perceived” without their keen sense of imagery.  Each of us, in our own way, distorts our own viewpoint…to either create beauty in our lives or not.

I think life is how we VIEW it.  And how we THINK about it. 

If we view things as negative, they are negative.  If we say things like “I’m impossible” or “I’m annoying”, well then most likely we are.  “That’s just the way I am” is not only a false statement but a devaluing of our own power to be anyone we wish to be.  It is, in a sense, an excuse.

In our lives, we have choices.  We can either choose to do the best we can or we can muddle around in the idea that nothing can change.  We can look at ourselves with kindness and know we are good, or we can berate ourselves for not being “good enough” (whatever the hell that is.)  As Dr. Wayne Dyer said – he liked to recite 5 words to himself – “I choose to feel good.”  He made the CHOICE to feel good…because it is, at its core, something you choose.

Oh, stop being so positive….I’ve heard that throughout the years.  And I say, why?  Is it better to be negative?  Isn’t being positive always a better choice?  Hey, it certainly can’t hurt.

Trust me – I’m no role model of positivity….or anything really.  I just like to believe in the good in people – in their struggling spirits…that the life they want is the life they can have.  If someone has a baby and worries – I’ll never be a good parent, then they are selling themselves short.  I would ask the question, “Do you want to be a good parent?”, and if their answer is yes, then they can make it so.  A perfect parent, no – a parent who loves and cares about their child and does the best they know how – that’s totally doable.

If we rid ourselves of the negative self-talk (I have to work on that all the time) and cut ourselves some slack….and stop worrying so much about all that which is out of our control, and concentrate on what our hearts tell us, I think only good, exciting things can come from that….a life well lived.

We have the choice, always, to decide how we want to look at our situations, how to think about them, and how to react to them.  It is our choice.  With practice, we can alter these viewpoints to create more clarity in our lives.  To truly SEE what is real…and follow it. 

You can tell a lot about a person by the groceries they buy. 

I just bought:
Multi-grain Cheerios
Weight Watchers Whole Wheat Rolls
Smart Ones Fettucini Alfredo
1/2 lb Boar’s Head Turkey
1/3 lb Provolone Cheese
Quart of 2% reduced fat milk
Low-fat frozen waffles
40% Reduced Fat Potato Chips
Pint of grape tomatoes
Pint of blueberries
An avocado
3 organic cups of yogurt
Coca-Cola

Can you see a pattern here?  Okay, okay…the Coke seems incongruous but it is my sugar vice…no diet soda for me..give me the real thing or nothing.  My sister and I call it Liquid Gold.  I know…I know.

The guy in front of me – a young Asian man, had a few items – but all I noticed were numerous cans of cat food and a bag of cat litter…and a piece of notebook paper that appeared to be his list.

The middle-aged guy behind me, bundled up from the cold, layed out on the conveyor belt, the following items:
Quart of milk
Can of cuban coffee
Bag of dried lentils
One deli item in white paper
One bottle (just one) of Irish Red Beer (of unknown brand)
Frozen box of twice baked potatoes
A roll of paper towels
Box of sugar
And I don’t remember the rest because I was trying not to stare.

Asian man had a cat – or maybe it was his girlfriends (he had a list, remember?)…he seemed bored.

Middle-aged man lives alone, is only drinking ONE beer tonight (either just jonesing the brand or has a problem), plans on making lentil soup (?), and most importantly got his coffee (sugar and milk) provisions so he can wake up in the morning.  He has his priorities straight.

What does it say about me?  I’m concerned about my fat intake and I “try”to eat right.  Looks like she has breakfast and lunch ready for the work week.

Next time I’ll buy tampons, sardines, juice boxes, Oreo’s and a toothbrush.  Just to confuse everyone.