Watch “That Time Pojo Took DC” on YouTube

My nephew recently went on a trip to DC and I loved seeing all these pics♡…

Watch “Giving Back…” on YouTube

Here’s my son recieving training this summer from an intern who is a freshman at UNM. He’s learning how to work at the Santa Fe Children’s Museum. He’s been going there since he was a young child and it’s such a great place. It is important to me to raise a thoughtful, creative, cultured child, whom could give back to his community.

This summer I decided it was time to take active steps in teaching him how to develop a good work ethic. We both became official volunteers at the Santa Fe Children’s Museum. What a great way to give back and teach kids something valuable in the process!

Full Circle

“Life is a full
circle, widening
until it joins
the circle motions
of the infinite.”

▪︎-Anais Nin

▪︎I once stood in this place as a high school student… the Poeh Culture Center… in my hometown… longing to belong to this cultural institution. Today I am able to provide knowledge there driven by two decades of experience. Life always comes full circle. Trust… you are always in that place which God intended you to be at any given moment.▪︎

A Darker Side

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
I’ve been working on my latest cosplay. This year I’ll transform into the dark side of June Moone. I loved her in the Suicide Squad movie. I’d say it was time for a darker look. Enchantress will be my 4th rendition of a villainous, female DC character. I think the first and last Marvel cosplay I entertained was Natasha Romanova, better known as Black Widow. I’ll be sticking to my love of DC from here on out.

I’ll get good use out of this costume because I’ll be wearing it 3x. Once to a Halloween party with some gym peeps (which I’m excited for)… to work on Halloween… and then to the 2017 ABQ ComicCon. This costume looks simple, but I’d say it is the most intricate I’ve crafted to date. I’ve made most of the accessories, as well as 95% of the bra and it hasn’t been easy! I believe this is the first time that the majority of what I needed to craft a costume came from a hardware store.

I’m hoping this cosplay will come together perfectly. I’ll be a little more covered up for the first two rounds, but I’ll definitely show more strangely marked and blackened skin at ComicCon. I would wear the more riskaay costume to my 1st soirée, but the work party falls in between!

▪Creativity Keeps Me Alive!▪

Intellectuals Love Pop Culture

I had a great learning experience at the 2016 Southwest Popular/American Culture Association (SWPACA) Conference thanks to scholarship funds. If I can’t find outside funds to attend this conference again next year, I would gladly pay my own way. I thought ARMA San Diego was the best conference I had been to until SWPACA. I love being around like minded intellectuals. There is really nothing like it. I do want a PhD someday.

I made it a point to keyword search the program (which was close to 150 pages) for the words archive(s), culture, history, and New Mexico. I focused my time at the conference on those sessions for the greater good. I love learning things to benefit both my knowledge and my agency. Everytime I could, I supported New Mexico professors and students by attending their presentations. There was so much great research presented during this conference. I also made a presentation there.

I did attend a small handful of sessions that were chosen because of personal interest. One was a session titled “Myth and Metaphor in the Works of J.R.R. Tolkien,” which happened to be delivered by a University of New Mexico (UNM) professor. Another awesome presentation gave an analysis of “Penny Dreadful,” which I love, by a teacher from Texas. That session featured another presentation on the research of a UNM professor and student on violent video games and children. There was one on how Batman’s suit employs STEM!! Then there was one on fetishism and the villainess. You know I went to that one!!

The mission of SWPACA is “to promote an innovative and nontraditional academic movement in Humanities and Social Sciences and to celebrate America’s cultural heritages. To provide an outlet for scholars, writers, and others interested in popular/American culture, to share ideas in a professional atmosphere, and to increase awareness and improve public perceptions of America’s cultural traditions and diverse populations.”

Amazing…

20 Years Passed

••Sharon and Felicia••

It was so good to see an old friend on my first day of outreach at the 2016 legislative session. I haven’t seen her in over 20 years. Unfortunately the photographs Thomas took of us came out super blurry, but I’m putting them up anyhow. I didn’t get to see Sharon for long because I was stuck in a marathon meeting most of the day. I’ll be back at the legislature on the 16th, so I hope to see her there again.

Sharon’s family owns a shop on the grounds of Santuario de Chimayo and I know it well. She and her brothers were always so creative… even in our youth. Sharon and her husband are both artists now, which is awesome. Check out http://www.blacketchedtin.com/. When you get a chance check out the video below which features Sharon Medina/Candelario in action.

••Sharon and Felicia••

She’s also into fitness! She’s a yoga instructor and owns Sacred Earth Yoga Studio in Chimayo… you all know how much I loved to hear that as a fitness fiend right!? I’ve always wanted to experiment with yoga, but my severe addiction to iron calls for unwavering devotion. I love to see my beautiful friend flourishing, still creative, radiating inner beauty, and fit!!! It was like we hadn’t skipped a beat.

Dreaming in 3-D

•Close up of a gold tipped rose and a quote I love•

Today my agency lost a woman with a heart of gold. A little under two weeks ago, all the people who care about her started planning a going away party for her. She dedicated many years to our mission and really cared about our agency. The day the invitation was emailed, I began to wonder what sort of special gift I could give my friend. For many years, she served as a sort of metaphorical glue in our agency. I am sad she had to leave.

•Going away party for Antz on 3.12.2015•

That night I came home with Antz on my mind. When the lights went out, I laid quietly in bed thinking. All the things she has done for me and others over the years crossed my mind. I am indeed a thinker. It’s because I care. I closed my eyes and remembered all the reasons she is special to me. When I love someone, I will give my all for them… especially when they love me in return and actually show that they care.

In the late night hours, my dreams were vivid. They were 3-D. I could feel them. Those I love inspired me to dream that night. My dreams brought me the idea to create a 3-D heart out of roses. As soon as I woke up, I sketched the idea on paper. I’ve learned to keep a notebook close. Ten minutes after my eyes opened, I knew exactly what I needed to buy to bring my dream to life and I knew it would be called “Heart of Gold.” I must say…without a doubt…what I saw in my mind’s eye was birthed in the real world last night. At midnight I created one of most lovely flower arrangements in my history of floral design!  

•Gold tipping 36 red roses•

In November of 2003, the American Psychological Association published “The Dream Canvas” (Vol.34, No.10). The article by Tori DeAngelis posed the question… “are dreams a muse to the creative?” Even though research is still being done to connect creativity and dreams, I know it is true from personal experience. I frequently dream of creating things and can often solve real world problems while I sleep.

The article notes a famous musician, an author, and an artist who all believed in this phenomenon. There are many non-artsy people who also find dreaming useful to problem solving. DeAngelis said that “research shows that fantasy-prone people may have higher dream recall than others.” Ommmm….yeah. She also said that “people who use dreams for creative purposes naturally have greater access to the dream world than others” and it’s true!

What still needs to be accounted for with regard to the connection between creativity/problem solving and dreams? I think more research needs to be done into how inspiration and emotions actually motivate these dreams. I am one of those who needs no scientific research to believe in and understand this. For me, creativity comes in dreams. It is connected to love, hope, friendship, and endless possibilities.

•3-D Heart Floral Arrangement by Felicia•

Dreamcatcher Tutorial

I had to share your tutorial. It’s a perfect gift. It takes a long time to make a beautiful catcher. I hope yours comes out nice. Your friend must be special to deserve a handcrafted gift. They are not easy to make. I used golden thread in my first to symbolize something I valued. I also used many symbolic things in the creation of mine. It made it truly unique. Put positive energy into your piece. I hope your friend appreciates you. 🙂
~~~Felicia

sit back, relax, and enjoy the blog

If you’re looking for a cute and thoughtful present to give someone, then look no further. Dreamcatchers are said to catch the bad dreams and let good dreams come from the center of the dreamcatcher, where they land softly down to you. I’ve always been intrigued by them and loved all the different designs they came in, so I decided how would I go about making one. The idea of making your own dreamcatcher is definitely a thoughtful present and lets you be creative. You can create all sorts of patterns and add all sorts of charms and beads. It only requires several materials, time, and effort to make a unique dreamcatcher that will last forever. After watching this tutorial, I decided that I will try and make one for my friend’s upcoming birthday. Everything looks simple enough and it let’s you be as creative as you want. I’m very…

View original post 16 more words

Wickedly, Tragically Beautiful

Wicked was unbelievable. It was amazing. I loved the symbolism of dark and light/good and bad/love and hate behind this version of the story. I would like to complete an analysis of the symbolism of this Broadway hit. There were such depth to the storyline, but for tonight…I’m tired. Another day!
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“To attempt the destruction of our passions is the height of folly. What a noble aim is that of the zealot who tortures himself like a madman in order to desire nothing, love nothing, feel nothing, and who, if he succeeded, would end up a complete monster!”
~~•Denis Diderot

I Believe in Magic

I had so much fun this year at the Santa Fe Renaissance Fair at El Rancho de Las Golondrinas. It was such a blast and I love that fair more every year. This is the third or fourth year that I’ve gone. I’m seriously contemplating being a volunteer next year, just to camp on the historic property.

Sucked that I missed the fire dancers this year. Here is a link to a video I shot of one of the fire dancers last year on the My Voyage Through Time YouTube channel. The belly dancers are always great to watch though~ mesmerized by bouncing bellies n shit. Hahahaaa! Of course…I went to the fair *after* a killer back workout!

The Tragedy of Carmen

Last night I went to the Santa Fe Opera. After a tail gate dinner, we watched the tragic love story Carmen. The opera is said to be one of the most performed operas by the French composer Georges Bizet. There were four acts with an intermission in between and the show started at 8:30pm with the ending close to midnight. In the end, Carmen the gypsy meets with death.

The libretto for this opera was based on a novella and was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. Carmen was first performed at the Opéra-Comique in Paris in 1875. Sadly, Bizet died before his tragic opera saw success. Carmen is a story about the powers and poisons of seduction and love. It was a beautiful evening. The outdoor opera house reminded me of how lovely my city is at night.

***Side note…I went to see this opera with my division director/deputy administrator, but coincidentally, my former division director who is also my former administrator was also there to see the show. Haha…small world!

Catcher of Dreams

Here is one of my new digital
composites. It has four layers.
It includes a photograph of myself
and a photograph of a special
dream catcher that I made not
long ago. It is impossible to catch
dreams sometimes.

~★~Catcher of Dreams
by Felicia Lujan~★~

Wicked

Dropped a grippa cash on Friday for tickets to Wicked. I can’t wait. Looking forward to a “wicked” October.