Take Yourself out on a Date

When I was in my 20s, I was confused about my path, like so many young adults. I was figuring out how to weave my skills, interests, and values into a life that felt good, meant something, and paid the bills. My reliably intuitive Aunt Patty gave me The Artist’s Way, Julia Cameron’s seminal book about how to move through the blocks that prevent us from enjoying and expressing our creative energy. 

Cameron’s book lays out a 12-week program of creative recovery, which starts with 3 core practices:

1. Daily Morning Pages: writing 3 pages of unfiltered thoughts, as a way to process our mental chaos and uncover potential insights

2. Walking Meditations: gentle thinking while gently moving

3. Weekly Artist Dates: a weekly solitary outing to awaken our senses and our sense of possibility

Leach Botanical Garden, Pleasant Valley neighborhood, Portland OR

Cameron warns that the Artist Date practice is the most difficult to maintain, because it seems like the least productive of the three. I’m lucky to live in Portland, where there is no shortage of fun outings to enjoy. For me, the challenging part of the Artist Date is going alone, because I prefer my adventures with a buddy. That said, I’ve recently made an effort to venture out solo - sometimes without my phone, for that extra level of solitude - and I feel the benefits of the excursions in a short period of time. Solitude can really sharpen my ability to see the world around and the world within me.

Second Shapes Bookstore, Kenton neighborhood, Portland OR

Some of these trips are out in nature. Others are to indoor spaces that offer art, beauty, or some other sensory treat. I pick a place that is affordable and approachable. I try not to set an agenda or overthink it. Instead, I take it all in through my senses and just enjoy it, like a kid might. This puts me in a mindset of abundance, feeling that so much is around me, and so much is possible. Life feels full of life! 

In a pinch during a super busy week, I go on a mini-date: a neighborhood walk in search of signs of creativity and natural wonder: garden art, mosaic steps, light displays, sticker art on signs, figurine collections in the parking strip, unusual houses and yards, and stunning trees. 

Fairy Garden, Richmond neighborhood, Portland OR

Artist dates reliably feed my creative spirit. After my weekly date, I feel more energized to create. I also feel more human. And while I’ve been alone on my outing, I end up feeling more connected to the world than ever.

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Some of the Places I've visited on my solo artist dates over the last few months:

1. SCRAP Creative Reuse

2. Brave Neighbor Coffeehouse / Spin Laundry Lounge

3. La Bouffe International Gourmet

4. Holgate branch of the Multnomah County Library

5. Second Shapes Bookstore

6. Columbia Art and Drafting

7. Literary Arts Bookstore & Cafe

8. Cargo

9. Sauvie Island orchards

10. Leach Botanical Garden

11. Montavilla Farmers Market

12. Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge

13. Birds & Bees Nursery - now closed :-(

14. The Rebuilding Center (pictured at the top of the blog)

15. Art Supply Center

Community Mosaic at the Holgate Branch, Multnomah County Library, Portland OR

Some of the Places I plan to visit (solo this time) over the next few months:

1. Mill End (Fabrics) Store

2. Starlight Knitting Society

3. Books Kinokiniya

4. Artistic Portland Gallery

5. Two Rivers Bookstore / Weird Sisters Yarn

6. Village Merchants consignment shop

7. Northwest Museum of Cartoon Arts

8. Peninsula Park Rose Garden

9. Hoyt Arboretum

10. Uwajimaya Asian Market

11. The Bird Alliance of Oregon

12. Soliloquy Fine Arts

13. Reclaim It Creative Reuse Center

14. Bold Coffee and Books

15. NW Marine Art Works Studios

Please share more ideas for artist dates in the comments - in Portland and beyond!

Picking apples at Sauvie Island OR