My Real Job

For the past seven years, I have been told by my friends to get a real job. Or they would just comment telling me that they have a real job and I don't. Well this is my job and it's not as easy as most people think it is. I work on my art six to seven days a week. I'm either sitting down drawing or standing up painting. I tend to take turns because if I sit down too long, my lower back starts to throb with pain so I stand up to paint. Painting is a lot easier on my body then drawing. But it tends to be hard on the feet and upper back after awhile. That's where walks come into play. It clears my mind, gives me fresh air with fresh ideas for upcoming work. Not so much in the cold winter months where I tend to put on weight. Being single and not having any children make it alot easier as well. I'm always under pressure and stressed out from my work or by someone else putting pressure on me regarding my work. My work is very tedious and detailed. I try to loosen up but I can't kick that habit of being a perfectionist. When I notice the slightist flaw in my work I can't seem to fix it. Erasing color pencil is impossible. I have to either cover it up with another color or just leave it and hope somebody doesn't notice it. My eyes are starting to become strained. Three weeks ago, my left eye started to twitch and became out of focused. When I looked in the mirror, my eye had became red and had swollen up. I became very concerned and I stopped making art for a few days. I took a trip to the optical center where they had informed me that I was straining my eyes! I need to wear glasses or my eyes will get worse. They had also advised me to see a doctor. I really don't want to wear glasses but I will in order to maintain my art career. The pain, stress and pressure is just like any other job maybe more or less. I don't punch a time clock. I make my own time. No matter how much it stresses me or how painful it is. I love and hate it at the same time. But mostly I love it. It's my passion. This is my real job.