Where to start????

I have been wrestling with my follow up entry because there is so much I want to say. It has been an interesting year so far, particularly since I have been focusing so much of my time on developing this new line of handbags. For fifteen years, I was completely devoted to the pursuit of gourd art, and made inroads I was never expected to make even though I was told over and over again that no one would ever take gourd art seriously; that I was a good painter and should pursue painting as my vocation, that gourds were a passing fancy, that no one knew what a gourd was, that everyone with a woodburning tool and a box of paints was doing them. I happen to be one of those people who loves the phrase "it can't be done" so naturally, I set off to prove the critics wrong. Fifteen years later, I feel as though there isn't a lot more to be accomplished in this field, and besides, devoting myself so thoroughly to a single pursuit cost me in ways I hadn't imagined at the time. Two years ago, I decided to experiment; with gourds, with paintings, with subject matter, with mediums, and now, with handbags. It has resulted in a "Persian Bazaar" effect on more than one occasion, but I find myself not only fascinated with so many different aspects of art, I also wanted to challenge my artistic abilities to see just what I was capable of. More artists than you can imagine spent years honing a particular style, only to abandon it for the style they became famous for, and while I find myself drawn to gourds over and over again, it helps to take time out once in awhile to try different things. I come back to the gourds filled with a renewed appreciation for the endless ways in which the form is interpreted, but I have also come to understand that some things can't be changed. The art world has tunnel vision when it comes to what qualifies as art, and even people with an intense appreciation for my work still think the only true art is an oil painting or a bronze sculpture. I also think that being an artist is MUCH, MUCH harder than people think it is. I have spent 100 hours a week in my studio, covered head to toe in saw dust, or gourd dust, or some kind of dust, working on pieces from morning to evening, trying to work out problems with respect to dimension, or color, or layout, woodburning for hours at a time, painting for hours at a time; a few years ago, I had drawn a layout for a piece that had an eagle in semi profile, and I got so frustrated with the way it wasn't coming, that I decided to go have some lunch, take a shower, and give it a try later that afternoon. I was headed to the bathroom a few minutes later, when I realized what I had done wrong, and three HOURS later, I looked up, realized the eagle was perfect, and I had never made it to the shower. And despite putting in 100 hours that week, I hadn't made a dime. So I guess I will say this about art and fun....it isn't fun at all sometimes, but it sure can be rewarding.....