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New BlogI have decided to start a new blog.My goals in blogging and life have changed since I started this site.I am looking for a cleaner more streamlined and professional site I won't mind giving out to prospective photography subjects.Also recent changes to spaces have made it so easy for others to download photos that I have been hesitant to post them here,where on blogspot the copied image is too small to get a large print from it.I may write here still from time to time,and will leave this space open checking for your comments.
I have met many cool ppl and what you have brought to my life has become a big part of the changes I have made.I am reminded of a saying that has touched my soul on a personal level before. Some peaple come into our lives and just as quickly leave again almost without notice ,others come and effect us in such a profound way they leave a permanent imprint on our souls long after they have left. I feel that way about several of my spaces friends and hope you will follow me where ever life takes me.Hope to see you there. I know many times when a blogger switches to another blog community it is difficult for others to comment and they slowly go away.That is why I chose Blogspot.I have allowed anonymous comments,so you may post comments easily.Just sign your comment at the end so I know who you are.
OMG,Tagged!!!Well my Dear friend Lisa thought it would be fun to find out 8 things about me that she didn't already know. Since I luv her so much I will play along.Here goes.
#1 I have been in every state of the USA except Hawaii,Alaska and Maine.I would love to see all three of these states as I know there is alot of beauty in each and all totally different from each other.Onterio Canada is the only international visit,though I would love to see Holland,Sweden,Norway,the rest of Canada and greece(so exotic )
#2 I am somewhat of a loner,at home spending time shopping ,eating out and even occasionally seeing a movie alone,however I do love the company of others and am equally at home spending an afternoon with others who have similar interests as I.I even admit to times when I just have to reach out to human contact.
#3 I am by nature a very independent person.I have always succeeded at anything I have tried to accomplish.This summer has been the longest period since Graduation from high school that I have gone without a job.In fact may be the only time I have actually collected unemployment.I crave the security of being able to take care of myself,and have struggled depression from the change in my life this year has brought.
#4 I have natural artistic ability.I combine colors freely and have been good at any craft I have tried. Over the years I have done crochet,sewing, ceramics,Silk flower arrangements a bit of cake decorating,beading and now photography.However I find myself lacking in imagination in areas of creating a still life and have little interest in some more abstract subject matters in my photography.I see things that are cute,but don't want to copy cat anyone.Sometimes I wonder why I can't come up with these ideas myself. Maybe I am a bit too left brained for true artistic thinking.But then most truely artistic ppl I have known have been a bit flighty.(Some I fear have been quite insane) LOL
#5 Well you know this,I have a bond with animals.What you may not know is I seriously desired to be a vet and have always been interested in the lives of Marine biologists.I did not wish to persue this as a carreer because of the many years of collage involved.I don't know why I never considered vet tech,except when my Mother died when I was 16 I decided I wanted to be a nurse and forgot about animal husbandry.
#6 I have had a dog in my life since age 5.Whenever I lost one I quickly replaced them with a new pet.The affection and love of Dogs has always been a neccesity to my happiness.
#7 True to loner form,I have never conformed to peer pressure.Even in family peers I was somehow always felt the odd one out.Fashion? What is that? If it is comfortable and I like it I don't tend to care if others think it looks funny.I do draw the line in clashing colors and patterns.Don't want to be a clown.LOL (Although Hubby has accused me of wearing things he would describe as "Kinda bright"This from a man that only wears blues,greens,orange and tan.)
#8 As a loner I have not been in a large click of friends.I do however keep the friends I have made through the years,making for friends that caan be trusted and know (almost) every detail about me. Good thing I pick trustworthy friends or I might have to kill em,LOL (Just joking)
Well that is it,I think.Hmm,Memories failing me,there must be millions of other experiences I could tell you about.I think like most loners I am getting a bit forgetful and accentric in my old age.Maybe that explains the gathering of animals I have acquired lately. OMG,In another 20 yrs I might be one of those crazy cat Ladies.LOL
I am supposed to tag someone (Sorry,I know you secretly hate it,but hey,you don't want me to suffer 10 yrs of bad luck, For God sake my hair could fall out or some other equally embarrasing retrebution) So to keep me in the good graces of Karma,I tag Etan,Kristi, ( You know you both like these challenges) and Cheryl Shana and Sheila,cause I don't want you to think you aren't Loved.LOL
Lisa,hope you aren't feeling left out.If you want, you can come up with 8 more.LOL
<Grins Sheepishly> Still friends???? Hugs,Tani
The new addition to the aplseed managerie. Lily,a feral kitten from the neighborhood.She was willing to come to me with less hesitancy than most of them do.She is a tortoisehell calico with beautiful green eyes.She is really quite a lover with us,but on the second day in the house she has turned into a she devil with all the other animals in the house,Her tolerence of their distance to her seems to have gotten worse,all she has to do is see them and she groans,hisses and strikes out. She wet my bed cause she isn't taking to the litter box.She won't stay in long enough to figure it out.( she is lucky Hubby isn't home,she would turn into an outdoor kitty ,fast) I am becoming a crazy cat lady.Next you will see me out in the yard wearing plaids with polka dots.Should you find me walking aimlessly about town talking to myself ,surrounded by 30 cats and dogs and a crazed look,Pls Lock me up and fast.LOL
Cross Your Fingers,Toes,Eyes, and anything you can.LOLToday I actually got a phone interview for a Quality manager position at a medical management agincy in Des Moines.Persistance has started to pay off,maybe.The position was for a LPN,but I may need some more experience with Power Point and eccel.I will try and poke around these programs to see how hard it would be to learn them while I wait to hear if I will be given a second interview.The top 2 applicants will be passed on to the next step in the process,I was the first interview,it may take a week to get the interviews all conducted,so I don't expect to hear anything for a while.Please cross you fingers and say a little prayer,this is exactly the kind of position I was hopeing to find.
I started physical therapy today as well.Mostly stretching excercises and ultrasound to my back.They cannot do ultrasound to both neck and back the same day,so they are going to alternate.I was sore when I got done.I also have homework.LOL
So I guess I will be busy with homework on both fronts.LOL
Hello AgainI guess maybe I am getting back some of my writing desire.LOl Here I am updating you,My friends ,about what is happnin here.
Friday while out trying my new determination to get up when bored or tired and pull some weeds,I had a tall horseweed (thats what I call them anyway) find it's way past my glasses and poke me right in the left eye.Yeow that hurt like heck too.Ssaturday morning I thought maybe it would heal on it's own,but by evening it was redder than ever and had a purulent matter caking on my lashes all the time.My eye burned horribly.Sunday Morning on the families persistant urging I went into a urgent care center in town.The good news was the scratch on my cornea wa small,and the resness was a result of a broken capillary.It should look norma agian in a couple weeks.The eye drops he prescribed have antibiotics to prevent infection,and steroid for swelling.Alr3eady the swelling around my eye is down and it doesn't burn as badly.
The photos were sent on for the Welcome Centers project.I hope to hear something about their success soon.
Above in the album are two collage attempts I made for possible poster prints to sell at the center.I like how they look,but the software used to make them is a free trial version,so I cannot get a large enough file to make a 11x14 poster print.To buy the software is $100 and I cannot invest that. I tried to do one in PSE,but had alot of trouble,so until I find a program that works easier and will do the format I want I will print a few 8x10 prints and see how they go over.Let me know what you think of them.
Around here we are under flood watches from recent thunderstorms we have been barraged with for days on end.The trees have dropped some leaves and it seems things are beginning to transition to the upcoming change of seasons.The thought of the long cold winter without traveling to warmer climes for a break from time to time is daunting. Surprise!!!Can you believe I am writing another blog so soon,LOL I know,But I have some news.
I am getting a bit more excited about my selling photos.The 5x7 images of the covered bridges are selling up at the Welcome Center.I got a call from the person who runs the shop there,and she is interested in my photos.She said 3 have sold this week.Another artist/photographer has had photos up there that although good didn't sell.The problem she had was she was marketing non bridge images in a Welcome canter meant to attract Bridge tourists.
She really liked my photos.They are currently working on a Rack card to sell for a fund raiser to promote the center.She asked if I could e mail pix of all the bridges to a man in North Carolina that is working on the printing project.The cards are 11 x 14 shiny postcard type cards and have images of the historic church where the welcome center is housed and the sign to the gateway to the bridges at the entrance to town.The bridge pix will be on it as well.The pix will be small to all fit on one card.it is an opportunity to get my photos recognized anyway and I don't mind donating to the preservation of the building.
She got me excited to explore other forms of the prints.I tink I will print up a few poster prints and work on a photo that would have all the bridges on one sheet with some text added..All I wanted before outlaying the money was some idea as to if they would sell.We have the Covered Bridge Festival the last weekend of October,and I will also print up a number of the prints to sell at the craft fair at the bridge. I'm So Dizzy,My Head Is Spinning
Time for another update I guess.I don't know what to say about my lack of blogging except that it reflects the effects this years changes have had on all areas of my life.
Lets reflect.Job? No,Turned down for every trucking app I have sent in.Resumes out to insurance companies and dispatch positions at trucking companies in hopes of getting a desk job utilizing my experience in Medical and Trucking Industries.So far The only responses I have had are emails that sing praises to all my experience,yet still say that they are hiring someone else.Pls keep looking at our job postings and apply to any you are interested in.I have stubornly applied to 6 different positions with this one company.The problem? I am over qualified for the positions they have open so far.I have broadened my job search to clinics,despite the back pain that I am sure will make active nursing difficult.But clinic work has long been an interest to me,I just never have landed one in past attempts.In my experience they seem to want to hire nurses that already have clinic experience.One interesting Job posting...A home care nurse position in Hawaii.It takes a year commitment,and you work 3 days on and 3 days off.They supply accomidations.Would be perfect for someone with no ties.
I have about 2 months of unemplyment benefits available.If I have to broaden my search even further I will search out home care first.I really do not desire to return to nursing home work,even though I have always been good at that job.I don't feel I can handle it physically with the back being what it is.
Health? Back pain.Well,the tens unit does help relieve the severe spasms that kept me from going very far on my feet,But I still have a limited tolerence to bending even with the tens on.I still have to sit frequently for a few minutes when doing an activity.I admit,Without the tens I would never even have attempted to attend the fair.Even with it it was a challenge,thank goodness they have many benches around the fairgrounds and I could sit whenever I needed.Whenever I over extend with a activity that requires several hours of walking like that,It often takes a full day to recover.
My Insulin Resistance is responding well to the diabetes med.I have lost 20 pounds in 4 months without even trying.My body just doesn't seem to get those starving hunger pains as often.In fact I often don't even eat after I get up till almost noon,and then because I need to take medication with food.However they ran a cholesterol test this week,and say it is slightly elevated.They are already talking about cholesterol meds with my cholesterol at 202.Don't mind me if I say they seem to dish that stuff out to everyone these days.I have been having headaches and my hands go to sleep during the night almost every night.I also get numbness in my Rt. foot after sitting for several hours.Today The Therepy Dr. suggested 2-3 weeks of intense physical therepy,and a new med trial that is supposed to help with nerve discomfort like numbness and tingling.I am still trying to find something that will help improve my activity tolerence.
It was funny that the day I got the call about the blood tests the nephew visiting made supper.What was the menu? Cheesy potato hamburger helper with a ton of added cheddar.(Cause you know there is never enough cheese,LOL) The vegetable? Green beans floating in a pool of .....You guessed it,Cheese.The vegetables didn't even look good.I stirred it into the main course and ate maybe half before I couldn't stand to take another bite. Don't get me wrong.I LOve Cheese.We go through a lot of shredded colby jack and cheddar cheeses.But I do not need it on everything I eat.LOL
The family ? Well they are all still here.SIL not working.Still hoping to fight for disability.My neice,Pregnant,due Oct 28.She will get help after the baby comes and I look for her to get a place for her and the baby after the New Year.
My nephew no longer lives here,but he visits and stays for days at a time.This week He came to stay for a few days (what he told his Uncle),That quickly turned into plans to stay all week.As usual the longer he stays the more his attitude degrades.I get irritated at his ignoring whatever any of us Woman ask him to do,His refusal to pick up after himself,and his outright disrespect for others space.There is frequent sniping between him and his Sister.His Mother has to repeat herself everytime she speaks to him as he doesn't respond,then he gets an attitude when you ask him if he heard you.
Today It came to a head with Him.I have been getting increasingly irritated with his attitudes.I told him just last night his continued stay would be determined by attitude.We had a thunderstorm roll in and He was told Grandma wanted her computer turned off during storms since I recently had a printer killed by a lightning strike.He ignored her,Several minutes later she asked him if he heard her.He admitted he had heard her ,but chose to ignore it.At this point I simply told him to pack up,I was taking him home to town when I went to the Therepy Dr. Appt today.He decided to get stupid then,He not only told me No I am not,But challenged me to see if I could get him in the car.It was an outright attempt to throw around his considerable weight with me.
As it stands now,He had his Grandma drive him,despite the fact she would have to spend the extra gas money when I was already headed in.After I calmed down a bit,I called his Uncle.I admit I took his refusal to go in a different meaning than he had meant it.I took it he was refusing to leave early,and I felt I had to make it clear This was my home and I had the right to decide who was here,and not be treated disresptively in my own home.He doesn't understand at all that his continual behaviors cause stress in our entire household.I hear him tell his Mother ,"I don't see what the problem is?" The problem is simply that he has a low opinion of all Woman,and he cannot conduct himself appropriately when a Woman is in a place of authority over him. I worry that he will ever be able to succeed in the world Until he learns how to be professional in dealings with supervisors.He is still not working,He cannot seem to find a job,But I suspect he makes little actual attempts.He likes to sit around playing video games or on the computer.His Uncle was livid over his outburst.He has decided at this point that B is no longer allowed to visit out here.He will not allow him to disrespect me.I was willing to limit visits to a couple days,the length of his ability to be pleasant,and the length of my tolerence,But Hubby says no.I had the unpleasant task of letting his Grandmother know that she would have to visit her Grandson somewhere else.I hate when I get caught up between him and his family matters.I always get made out as the bad guy.
No wonder I have headaches.Hawaii doesn't sound to bad,LOL
I have had a couple of days this week capturing the sights of the Iowa State Fair.Heat advisories on Monday made it a hard afternoon,I enjoyed the sights I captured,But I sufferd near heat stroke.Literally.I was sick all afternoon and kept going on pure stuborness.I had planned on staying till dark to capture the lights on the midway rides.I even carried my tripod around all day in anticipation.,but the heat sickness made me cut it short late afternoon.I returned this evening ,the temps were much nicer,and the crowds were out.I went for only 1 hour,My intentions only to get a Iowa State Fairground Corn dog (Theres nothing quite like a freshly dipped and fried corny dog with mustard.) and to shoot pix in the midway.I was lucky and caught a shriner shuttle ride to the gate from the lot..I tried several different things with the lights on the midway and headed to the car lot again.OMG,I wouldn't have thought it was so far away.The shuttles do not run after 8 pm since their carts don't have lights,So I was on my own.I grabbed the corn dog on the way out.
Well to tie this up,lets just say I need to try and find motivation to do more around here,and spend at least a few minutes in the garden.I have to shake the malaise I have slipped into,I need to find something that will work out well for a job.I need to get some kind of normal schedule to keep,as I sense a serious boredom setting in.I often have to lay down for naps as there just isn't anything to keep me interested enough to keep my eyes open anymore.I have learned alot of new photo software techniques and photography has been able to keep me somewhat alive.I have consigned my bracelets to a store in Winterset,and the visitor center here in town.Some 46 5x7 images of the 6 covered bridges are displayed for sale there as well.With the visitor center the small percentage they charge the proceeds go to improving the condition of the old brick church building that houses the center.They display crafts from many local ppl.I feel the cause is a good one anyway.Maybe I can begin to recoup my investment anyway.
Lastly I need to make sure my blog doesn't turn into a constant whining about my situation.I hate when I visit others and see the same complaints all the time and no apparent possitive steps made to improve.I not only don't want to be that person,but don't want my blogging community to think that way about me either,And that is the root of my writers block here.So with that I will sign off now,I will update you if something exciting Motivates me again.Thanks to the handfull of blog buddies that have remained supportive through this dry spell.You know who you are.LOL I love you all,Thanks for being here.
Like Popcorn In A kettleI headed back out to the balloon field tonight for another evening flight and the last night glo for the event.The weather was much more cloudy tonight,and as I was pulling into the parking the sun was casting rays from behind a big cloud formation.They had just had a sprinkle and had a balloon delay.
It was evident it was clearing off a bit,so the balloons slowly took to the field.When given the go ahead they started to set up.Tonight was a mass assention event.The challenge was a hare and hound.This means that 2 balloons would take off moments before the rest of the field and would race off to drop their targets in a field somewhere while the rest of the crowd were hot on their heels in chase.The wind was blowing to the South,so they set up in a good position for me to see the preparations while they laid out ther balloons,filled them with cold air,and readied them for take off.It also meant they would be flying straight over our heds as they flew south.When the first balloon took to the air he was trailing a yellow streamer behind him,that was his target he was going to be dropping.Soon the rest of the balloons began to take air as well and it began to look like brightly colored popcorn popping up in a kettle.Pop,pop,pop ans they followed one another as fast as they could.
I had spoken with Lisa before going ,and she had helped me finally figure out how to set the saturation and contrast in my camera,and I am glad since the light wasn't nearly as bright tonight,and I still was able to get great color contrast out of the balloons.I took many images of the crowd of balloons as they flew over the trees and out of sight.Without the sun silloueting them you can see their colors much better.No more chances at balloon eclipses and sunsets with balloons in them though.
With all the clouds it was a pretty sunset tonight,and the crowd seemed to enjoy the band while we waited for the night glo.Many kids and parents were u front dancing.It was enjoyable just ppl watching.Eventually a couple balloons trickled back in and the special shape balloons filled up.Tonight I got a sidelong glance at the bear.I had thought he was a mouse,but hadn't really seen him last night.The band kept on playing,and soon it was evident only a handfull of balloons were going to make it to the night glo.The winds were brisk enough they had trouble keeping them still.It was getting quite dark when they stazrted to light them,by then the camera was calling for extended exposures and there was just too much movement to get good night shots.I will have to wait a year to try it again,bummer.I am glad I did get one good night shot last night,and that it came out perfect.
A Lot Of Hot AirHere in Central Iowa is the birthplace of the origina National Balloon races.Some years back they decided to move that event around and Indianola lost it's annual event.They continued the tradition anyway,and they now hold the annual Ballon Classic.Alot of cooperation of the area farmers is needed to allow balloons to take off or land in thier fields.The locals love these big colorful balloons,and several of the pilots are from the central Iowa area.
I arrived to the balloon field early,and there were all kinds of entertainment while waiting.There were balloon rides,a climbing wall and concessions.They had a local dance studio giving a performance,and a band later.ppl set up lawn chairs,blankets or just sat in the grass along the hillside in front of the balloon field.Kids blowing bubbles and running around having fun.
We watched the balloons air up and take to the evening sky.Shortly after they took off more balloons flew in that had taken to the air from out in the country.Thier goal was to arrive to the balloon field and toss a sandbag at a target.Cash prizes to the one who gets it closest to the goal.Wind conditions always play a factor,and many balloons came in too short,or never even got over the target.There was a couple that did get directly over the poles however and I saw 2 winners in last evenings flight.As the sky darkened they began to settle the balloons across the field for the night glo event.The flmaes of the baloons make thier colors stand out.It is what I was really wanting to capture.
I had carefully packed my bag,remembered my tripod even.However never even thought about the spare battery...Sitting in the charger at home.After taking over 100 shots my battery died.This meant I missed most of the night glo event.This is where the tethered balloons light up their colors against the darkening sky.I did get a few shots however,and after done just enjoyed watching.I plan to go back tonight for another night glo.
A slideshow of the balloons can be viewed at this link. http://www.flickr.com/photos/aplseed/sets/72157601165743685/ |
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