Good morning. Today is June 6, the first anniversary [blogiversary]* of this writing endeavor. Well, actually, I launched it long before June 6, 2019, but my lack of skills and knowledge stopped me dead in my tracks. I could not figure out what to do next. Enter co-worker/friend/fellow creative, Kaitlin, who got Creativelyannette set up and me going. No looking back.

Sometimes I fell into the addictive pit I imagine other bloggers are impacted by. I get ideas, attend events, whatever, and just write, day after day. Then I remember that blogs are meant to be short spurts of writing, not long treatises, well some might be.

What’s transpired in the past year? In our lives so very much and such immense change as we get ready to enter week twelve of “stay at home.” Yes, our cities are starting to slowly open. Today’s newspaper reported that employment numbers are rising as people are able to return to work. Let’s hope everyone stays well and returns to an enjoyable and easy life. But back to my blogiversary. In total, I’ve written 119 posts. Almost ninety followers have been attracted to my writing and photos. Thank you all for reading, liking, commenting. and sharing my posts.

What forms of creativity have I written about? Lots about food. Of course, I love food. I get great pleasure when Constant Companion and Daughter enjoy what’s on the table day after day. One of the scholarly areas I dabble in is food history, especially Jewish food and traditions. This platform has allowed me to write about and cook Jewish food from Shabbat to the calendar holidays. As the calendar year draws to a close, I’ll continue with foodways associated with Jewish life cycle events over the summer.

I’ve also cooked and written about global tastes enjoyed by my family and guests. These have included attempts at Greek, Moroccan, Mexican, Korean, and Chinese dishes. Long ago a friend asked me for a recipe for a particular Greek shrimp dish. I was not familiar with it so I pulled some cookbooks off the shelf and we found just what she wanted. A while later, I was asked to cook a dinner for a local charity. I chose a Moroccan meal – salads, bstilla, couscous, and more. This friend was unable to attend, but contributed generously. She stopped by the house on the day of the dinner, saw my groaning table and exclaimed – “You cook the authentic food.” This story is a way to apologize for changes I make to the ethnic cuisine I attempt.

Creativity for me has always taken the form of crafts. My long ago meanderings through university took me from a major in dance to a degree in African Studies and textile crafts. You may have read on a past post, that I made jewelry in college. As part of my studies, I learned to weave and explored other craft traditions.

Making has always been a creative outlet. In the past year, I had fun transforming my modest collection of Mardi Gras beads into mosaics/collages. Kaitlin and I spent a day together playing with Shrinky Dinks; I still have to do something with the ones I made. Several old pieces of fabric stimulated me to unpack my old sewing machine; a few new dresses emerged. It also was called to action to make a few t-shirt quilts (made in honor of breast cancer and thanking friends). I also introduced my passion/obsession with hamsas and pomegranates, two very feminist images, in different media.

Commentaries and musings were the focus of other postings. From time-to-time, I reflected on my work in museums or busman holidays to museums around the world (more of that to come). I had more fun thinking about the annual, local plethora of art fairs Constant Companion and I have been enjoying for a number of years. My daily reports almost took the form of a compulsive obsession; they gave me another way to frame the fairs. Observations and thoughts about other events including Trade shows, Wine tastings, and the annual Antique Fair have made their way here.

Then there’s our current situation in Hotel California. As I wrote above, we are poised to enter week twelve of isolation even as phased opening into the new future is taking place. We all find our ways to keep active, to keep our brains working, and also our bodies during this unusual time.

Thank you readers from many places around the world. Some of you I know, others I don’t. I already have a short list of topics to launch in year two of Creativelyannette.

*Note: Blogiversary – anniversary of a blog; thanks to our resident wordsmith – Daughter!