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Happy Halfway-Through-the-Week Day,

This week began with just another Manic Monday.

I was typing about a mile a minute trying write finish this story about Long Beach Vegan Pizza‘s future home, among other items on my to-do list. And my colleagues had to watch me frantically zoom from my desk to the Keurig and back again (sorry guys).

Suddenly, my blood ran cold when I realized I had yet another task ahead—I had previously offered to help get footage of Long Beach Walls—an annual festival that has artists working from dawn till dusk daily to complete 12 different murals around the city by Saturday (and I thought my deadlines were daunting).

I grumbled all the way to my first stop: Long Beach City Hall’s Parking Garage.

But when I actually peered up at artist Jason Keam standing on a scissor lift, spray painting his massive illustration across a towering wall, my icy, workaholic heart started to melt (it was also like 80 degrees outside).

Ah yes, art doing what it’s intended—to give you a little serotonin as a treat.

In all seriousness, I was in absolute awe of the sheer scope and scale of this undertaking.

Following this digital passport, I found myself eager to get to the next stop.

Jason’s expressionistic art is all over this city—from a Cambodia Town mural, to flyers for Aquarium of the Pacific‘s wildly popular Nite Dive events. And now you’ve got the rare opportunity to actually see him and 12 other artists as they work to enliven previously drab walls around town.

Despite my profession, I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not actually all that observant. Through this experience, I started to wonder how many times I’d thoughtlessly passed one of Long Beach’s many, many murals (no seriously, they just keep popping up everywhere).

So, that’s why this week, OTC readers and fellow stress-cadets, I’d like to persuade you to visit some of these works in process—you can find them from Downtown to Zaferia to Alamitos Beach. Here’s your map.

Yesterday, I had to find Dina Saadi, the last muralist on my list. On Monday, she had just arrived in town all the way from Dubai to complete her second-ever Long Beach mural.

When I approached her inside the Convention Center (the fest’s only indoor mural this year), she confirmed the swirl of emotions the piece was already beginning to evoke in me.

“This woman actually came to me in a dream and I tried to recreate her face,” Dina told me, fresh off the scissor lift.

“I think it was a tough time in my life. I was very anxious. I dreamt that she told me, ‘Everything’s gonna be fine’, but I need to slow down and remember that we’re all one with everything around us.”

Much of Dina’s work is centered around mental health. In the mural pictured above, she’s using cool tones and visuals inspired by nature to help the viewer “strike a balance between the urban and natural world.”

Thank you, Dina.

Once again, you can find all of these murals and more of the festival’s offerings here.

Pro tip: The map doesn’t seem to specify where in the Convention Center you can find Dina’s mural. Find her piece inside the downstairs lobby of the Beverly O’Neill Theater.