K.T. Zangpo Studios

What meal do you make for your first Mabon in New Orleans? Why, jambalaya, of course! And what to enjoy, libation wise, for such a meal? Why jade_liqueurs Nouvelle Orléans Absinthe Supérieure, naturally!

What a meal! What a year so far! The second harvest has been wonderful!

Much love everyone!! 🤟

Happy Mabon to those who celebrate. May your harvest & blessings be bountiful!!

Guess who won the August photo contest at Historical Emporium (IG historicalemporium) ?

I did!!! Woohoo!!

Soon (probably Mardi Gras) I’ll be rocking at the Frenchmen St art bazaar in my finest!

I love this place, Historical Emporium, because they have a nice selection and their prices are amazing. There aren’t very many places to purchase period clothing so you might think they’d be expensive. Keep in mind these aren’t cheaply made costumes, they’re fine clothing and the prices are less than you’d pay for modern “dress clothes”. I have 1 pair of shoes, 2 pairs of pants, two shirts, 3 vests, 3 ties, 1 frock coat and two hats which I have purchased over about a year and a half’s time. It didn’t break the bank and I have several different “looks” to choose from.

If you’re interested in period clothing (several different eras and styles to choose from) you should check them out, you won’t be disappointed!

https://www.historicalemporium.com/blog/2024/09/august-2024-photo-contest-winner

Kenzie & I took a walk to The flagpole nola , our favorite spot! She’s tried almost every flavor! Along the way we saw a beautiful hibiscus blossom 😁 I love our time together just she & I!

I absolutely love living here! I haven’t been feeling very well for several weeks but as soon as I step outside I’m reminded of how lucky I am to live in this beautiful city!

Last nights sunset

For Father’s Day & my birthday Connor got me some Alphonse Mucha prints. They’re beautiful!! For Father’s Day he got me “Painting” from Mucha’s “The Arts” series to complete my collection! For my birthday he got me Mucha’s “Green Medallion I”.

I enjoy his works immensely! They beautify our home in such a lovely way!

Dinner was fantastic!! I like to cook and so I’m a bit critical and this place is the best food we’ve had since we moved here!! I couldn’t recommend this restaurant high enough! Great food, wonderful service and you can’t beat the pricing considering the quality of the food! We had an amazing time!

Today is my 51st birthday! An aperitif before dinner at Dooky Chase to wet the appetite and calm the nerves before a car ride. You do what you gotta do to celebrate with your family!! I struggle with agoraphobia and anxiety, I wrestle it everyday. Today is a good day and I’m ready for some incredible food (that I didn’t cook lol)!

I’m wishing y’all the best! Much love!

While I’m getting myself prepared for getting back into the studio I’ve been sharing pieces of me to better illustrate my art as a whole (it’s a lifelong performance art piece).

In one perspective it’s a fight while another view it could be called a dance, I prefer to think of it like tai chi; both. To fight the depression, I journal every day and to fight the movement disorder I’ve been working on my penmanship which used to be illegible long before the movement disorder. This one activity helps both of those and allows me to continue the dance. I write one page a day and this was today’s entry inspired by this morning’s card from my oracle deck. I wanted to share this entry because I write about being a “spiritual friend” (Kalyāṇa-mittatā if you wanted to google it) and my interpretation of its meaning in my life. I often talk about choosing the perspective (light, star to navigate the ship if you by, etc) that you follow in life and I thought it might be helpful to someone out there to show how I go about doing that for myself.

I’ll be back in the studio very soon! I’m taking my time, getting prepared and realizing my worth. Big news coming soon about how this is paying off for us. I’m currently working on a video covering all the changes we’re undergoing. Life is good and though I’m challenged I’m happy.

Much love! The light which is me recognizes and honors the light which is you - namaste

🤟Ryan

It took me two days, numerous panic attacks, a migraine & cluster headaches (yesterday) and finally just going for it, but I rode my bike to Canseco’s & did the shopping. I’m back at home and my everything hurts (picture bike riding while being tased). I got sick from anxiety after putting the groceries away and I have an ice pack on the base of my skull but I feel accomplished. I’m quite proud of myself.

During my morning prayers the universe said “fight for what you want, fight with everything you have, to your last breath”. My fight, for now, is done. We’ll see how my body cooperates when it comes time to make dinner. I’m making Philly cheesesteak sandwiches!

Sometimes you have to fight to get what you want and sometimes your opponent is you, yourself.

Rose & I went out for the day, just her and I, and had a fabulous time! We took a walk up Esplanade ave. I took lovely photo of Rose at the Gayrre Place monument. We found a local grocery store, that I can bike to, and a great restaurant. I can highly recommend the blackened fresh fish tacos at Sante Fe Mexican restaurant! Then a nice walk home past the local Hare Krishna temple (a nice photo of their parade float). It was a very enjoyable afternoon!

I wish I could explain to you just how beautiful you are, but most of us want some tangible quality which we, ourselves, can see. We would love to have some evidence with which to triangulate our worth and there by be able to prove it to ourselves.

But how does one describe the beauty of a sunbeam without mentioning the sliver of a moment when that light fell upon some physical thing? How do I separate the object from the light? How do I tell you that your beautiful light is not diminished once that moment has passed? If I speak of a sunrise, a shooting star or the moon, how do I convince you that the glorious beauty exists on cloudy days as much as it does when the sky is clear? How do I impress upon you that I do not judge the worth of the light by what it passes through or what it illuminates? The light existed before the object, it is an expression without thought of reception.

I wish I could explain that in such a way so you could see it as I do. Though I’m looking into your eyes I see the spark of light which is you. I do not see your body as you do. We see ourselves as a collection of flaws, things we wish we could change or things we can “live with”, but when do we accept and love our natural state without some augmentation? My hair, my face, my clothes and other accessories are not me.

As much as I wish I could show this to you, I wish I could look into a mirror and convince myself of the same. More and more everyday I look into my own eyes and try to appreciate my beauty. As often as I can I remind myself of a poem I wrote so many years ago as a metaphor to understand life, viewed as a movie:

So captivated are we
By the images on the screen
We forget that we
Are the light
By which it is seen

I believe we’re here just walking each other home, as Ram Dass said. Home, where we have no bodies to feel insecure about, where we’re simply beings of light and not separate from each other. I look into your eyes and I see that beautiful light, warm and welcoming as my front porch light reminding me it won’t be long before we’re all home.

Much love & remember
You are beautiful, loved & appreciated

We haven’t been to The flagpole nola in a bit, so we took advantage of a break in the rain to get some iced lattes & a snowball for Kenzie 😊

I just love the wonderful folks who own/run this shop. Always friendly, tasty treats for kids of all ages and a great spot to sit and enjoy the local color! It’s fast become my favorite place in our neighborhood.

Then, down the street a bit, I got a photo of my little friend who has been living on this small palm & eating well 😁

Supporting what you love instead of bashing what you hate makes for a happier life if you ask me!

Yesterday’s visitor while I was locking up our bikes. I believe in signs from the universe and animal shamanism is a frequent source of those messages. Dragonflies have always meant swift change, always for the betterment of our lives, though growth can be painful. This leg of our journey is no different than the path I have always walked.

So much was spoken to me in this one encounter. I’m not sure if you can see or tell but the damselfly (similar meaning to dragonfly) has caught and is eating a termite; a pest. It tells me we’re on the right path, removing the unnecessary from our lives and bringing the color back into it.

It’s been a challenge, just moving here. To uproot our lives and move away from my home state where we’ve made a life for the last last twenty some years, to believe in ourselves as artists and follow our hearts in such a way, has been difficult. We’re growing and changing every day. We’re living every moment instead of living for the weekend. I wish I could better explain the deep and profound change we’re enjoying currently, I guess you’ll just have to watch and observe for yourselves.

With my brain wired through the fear center I still have the courage to reach for the brass ring! Life isn’t a destination, it’s a journey and if you keep your eyes open you can appreciate the beauty all around you.

Rose & I are working on an update video where we cover these changes and the exciting new developments, so stay tuned for that!

I’ll leave you with a search engine result for this animal totem:

“The damselfly symbolizes transformation, adaptability, and a connection to the spiritual realm. It represents the ability to overcome obstacles and the power of the subconscious mind.”

Much love everyone! I hope you’re having a beautiful day!

Lunch earlier at Voodoo Tavern & Po’Boys. I had the fried shrimp po’boy. It was pretty tasty! I got a nice ego boost when Kenzie said she likes my hamburgers better and then later Connor said I make a better roast beef po’boy 😁 to which Kenzie added “yeah, Dad spoils us” 😂
So I feel pretty accomplished.

Bike ride to the Flag Pole for some snowballs & a coffee! It’s a beautiful day here in New Orleans. We wish you all the best!