Creative Block Party
By Darka Dusty Painting by Halyna Cisaruk If you’re an artist, writer or musician (and if you’re in Portland, Oregon, chances are excellent that you ARE an artist, writer or musician), you have things you believe you do well, and things you believe you do really well, and things you know you could improve, and things that make you think you should hang it up and get a real estate license. And things you think you suck at. You’re probably much harder on yourself than you should be, especially if you try to live a creative life. As an artist, a writer, musician or anyone who regularly summons your muse or faces your creative demons, you are part of a very special, sensitive club. We creative types feel things deeply. We cry easier than most, and maybe this causes us to drink or smoke more than most, or find other ways to alter our perceptions. Sometimes we just need to momentarily numb ourselves from the intense majesty of life. The beauty we perceive around us can just be too goddamn much to take, making our emotional pain and passion excruciatingly unbearable. It’s also what causes us to see things in…