All those years ago when I posted my first Pithy Ponderings, I could never have imagined I would still be intermittently sharing these blogs, let alone sharing videos and projects. Over the years, I have added Pithy History (a mostly retired section), Dust Bunnies and Daily Fiber, and Pithy Patchwork Projects to the topics I share. My fiber friends came to know me as Pioneerlady, Pioneerlady at Pithyponderings, and as Unwinding With Fiber and Fabrics. More recently some people over at NightCafe (an Ai art platform) have come to know me as @Unwinding. All of these changes reflect the changes in my life, and my growth. Sharing, whether through blog, vlog, or social media posts has challenged me to step out of my comfort zone. It takes much more confidence to share the things that bring me joy then it does to simply do the things that bring me joy.

Dabbling with Ai art was never something I expected to do. Fabrics and fibers are much more my kind of art, plus like many, I recognized the controversy of Ai “art”. You might say I fell down this rabbit hole much like Alice, very unaware of where it would lead.

I was simply searching for an image that would represent me in a Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) game. Simple enough to find, I innocently thought. It turns out, wrinkly and plump, attractive and resilient, irreverent and whimsical females are underrepresented Table Top Roll Playing Games (TTRPG), or at least in the art that depicts the worlds of TTRPG.

Dissatisfied with what my searches produced, and woefully unable to afford to pay an artist to render one for me in a more traditional fashion, I turned to Ai.

Over these past months, I have developed a style and a persona. In D&D, I’m on my third avatar, each one a bit more representative of who I am. The final one developing out of a conversation I had with my son about a creative journey we are embarking upon, a journey I hope to share here in my blog.

The third image is the human form of an amethyst dragon. A dragon it seems that has been my secret identity all along.

I have been known by many names, and now I add one more to the list – The Pithy Dragon.

So many of the creative pursuits I now embrace as necessary to my wellbeing began out of the desire to support my children. The Ai and D&D rabbit hole that has dominated my life these past few months is another example of this pattern. With time, (and with events outside my control wrapping up) I will find balance once again, but for now I will frolic in a new wonderland of purple dragons, brave heroes, and epic quests.

If fortune favors me, I will have content to share in the upcoming weeks. For now, I will be sharing images on Instagram, but it is my hope to have other content to share or link to as I continue on this journey.

Oh, and I will certainly continue to share all my other content as the mood strikes me. After all, the fiber and fabric, the pithy thoughts, and the joys of life will still need to be shared.