Paula Timm Artist

Monday, November 17, 2014

LIFE is so GOOD right now..but somedays are still a challenge.

My life has been a challenge, illness and more illness and then the troubles that come with having an illness. It has been confirmed that I will need one more surgery....I am devastated and scared, and yes, I am in therapy to help me with this. My days will and are filled with a lot of emotional unpacking to get through my PTSD around the past surgery events.

BUT today is a day to celebrate and that is the lesson that I have learned through having ulcerative colitis; embrace the suck and remember to celebrate the good.

So today is celebrate the good day! I have applied and been accepted to a residency at Wallace Stegner House in Eastend, Saskatchewan. WOOHOO! Two weeks of seclusion to do nothing but hone my creative spirit and drill it into canvas or what ever my He-art desires. No, it is not everyone's dream, but it is a joy for me to spend any amount of time doing art. Let alone it will be in a wonderfully soulful home that has been inhabited by so many creatives, be it a writer or a visual artist. I will write more on the subject of this town, it's hold on me, the way I came to find it..but I will gush on about that when I have more time....BECAUSE I am getting ready for an art show!
KISSY face 4"x4" on wood panel Mixed Media by Paula Timm

Oh my, celebrate the GOOD indeed; Due to the last minute show, 'Deck the Walls', an idea created by Karen Scarlett, Jess Kostka, and award winning Jill Drader- I have been busy making art and SELLING IT! These inspired gals wanted to bring local artists to seasonal shoppers of Calgary and perhaps beyond.  The idea, small sized (affordably sized) art. So I am sure that you get the message, put your hard earned money to good use, shop local, support an artist, keep sane by keeping out of the malls!

The best part of this show is where it is being held at...Two amazing locally owned and operated restaurants. Shop anytime, have a bite, a french biscuit, coffee or wine...enjoy the season and celebrate the good days...(and if it is a suck day, embrace for one day and move on).

Tomorrow I will be at Heaven's GF restaurant from 6-8pm, celebrating with other local artists in the official opening of our show! Contact me for your order! www.paulatimm.com

Heaven Artisan GF Cuisine 
1013 17 Ave SW #119, Calgary, AB T2T 0A7

Patisserie du Soleil Bakery Cafe
2525 Woodview Dr SW, Calgary, AB T2W 3Y1

Monday, November 3, 2014

Surgery, COMEback winner and an Artist!

It is November and it is Crohn's and colitis awareness month!! and I couldn't be more aware!! Yes, this disease that I thought I had walked away from has found a way to a royal pain in my ass.
a recent 'gut art' piece, intuitively
I drew big feet (size 10 for me),
stitched midline (size large on me),
and a cape (name wonder woman in ICU).

I traveled to another city for a surgical opinion this past friday. The short version of this story is that I need to have the surgery. I figured that was going to be the response but I had hoped for more of a miracle discussion. Post appointment and in response to my news, my friend Angie, so aptly put it "Upon finishing my 8th year at Hogwarts I was given the spell to cure all of your ailments! Wingardium leviosa!". Thanks Angie, I don't levitate as a rule.

In all fairness and all seriousness, I am scared "shitless". I know I was supposed to be serious. However this disease accentuates how many poo jokes our society has and how little those that suffer with their poop can talk honestly about it.

I have had ulcerative colitis for 15 years, and nearly four years ago I opted to have my colon removed. The next surgery is to have my rectum removed.

I have been in Post Traumatic therapy to help me with the trauma I experienced in the first surgery. It seems I can't put off this surgery any longer as my risks and health issues are starting to be too great to leave status quo alone.
I have been using art to heal for four years,
this is ten minute sketch I did
as part of Mystele Kirkeeng's Gut Art class. 

The one thing I do know, during my surgical consult, as I was struggling to make sense of words and feelings - I said "I want to focus on my art career and not my health". I want to shed the cloak of despair and pain that I have carried so long. I want to flourish and be free and energetic. They tell me that the surgery will grant me this wish but first I must endure the dreaded procedure.

This is a huge road for me, one that will take more talking and planning but the writ has been dropped. I must prepare for battle. My armour is slightly dinted. My heart slightly broken. I know how the battlefield is won and where I can improve my skills to be an even more amazing warrior. 

And then there is this stinking reminder that keeps popping up and is now so very public. I am newly crowned National winner of the Great Comebacks award. Yes, I won 2014/15 Great Comeback award for being the poster child of surviving, thriving and inspiring others to take on their fears, get an ostomy and then go get a life!@ oi vey. Guess I will go and do that now.

Family Graffiti series to be
sold in show 'Deck The Walls'.
These works will be shown at two bakeries
over the holiday season!
Couldn't have done this art without my past!
Thank you for your support in who I am and my creative expressions I share. I'd love to see you at 'Deck The Halls' to purchase some affordable art. I am having a two show opening nights as we have two amazing places to sell our art. 
Patisserie du Soleil – Wednesday, November 12, 2014, 6-8pm  
2525 Woodview Dr SW, Calgary, AB T2W 3Y1

Heaven’s Artisan GF Restaurant – Tuesday, November 18, 2014, 6-8pm 
1013 17 Ave SW #119, Calgary, AB T2T 0A7

Join me for more fun and updates...