Moving is a word that can strike fear in the hearts of the most robust and upbeat people. Each year in a place adds another layer to the collage of life. Therefore, I have about 20 layers to go through, peel back, contemplate, and decide what gets to stay. It’s a hard job, but I have to do it. It started a few years ago as Swedish Death Cleaning, and now it is serious. We will be moving from our rather rangy home into a 3- bedroom apartment as soon as we can get the job done.

A few months ago, eager to beat the snow, I started on a campaign to understand every single housing option for us. I have been a homeowner almost exclusively since 1976. To contemplate renting, it took a certain leap of faith. I did come to the conclusion, however, that I have begun to feel that the house owns us. Renting will offer a few different things – no more “to do” lists every weekend, no more things to fix or replace, and a certain amount of flexibility to move if we don’t like where we end up. Once we get rid of a fair amount of baggage, we should be lean and more able to pick up and try someplace else. Also, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the cost of renting here in the Twin Cities is reasonable and fits nicely within our fixed income. I have focused on 3 bedrooms/2 baths with the intention of using one bedroom as my art studio. I already have the floor plan all figured out on graph paper, which helps me see what I can bring. We will actually have more square footage than we do now.

The first step for me is to downsize the art supplies and pieces of furniture that make up my happy place. I will hold a sale soon to sell or give away all the things that I have not touched in the last 3-4 years, and to generally lighten my load. I will probably focus on making art on paper, rather than on cradled boards with large, matching frames. If you are looking for me, I will be packing.

This is the second stage of my transition from being an exhibiting artist to an artist with time on my hands to follow the muse and see where it takes me. I am looking forward to it in the broadest sense. Rather than 2 gardens full of flowers, I will now have 5-6 pots of my favorites, on the balcony/porch/deck in pretty pots, out there with my favorite deck chair. I will keep all my watercolors, pens, markers, most of my acrylics, and all the paper I have accumulated. It will be a delight to have running water and a bathroom right down the hall, rather than to go “next door” to the house and haul buckets of water.

This is certainly a big step, but it is not the first time. I have reinvented myself/my life at least 4 times so far, and I look forward to it, packing aside. If you are in the neighborhood, please stop by. I am never too busy to take a tea break!