Hot, Rain, Snow. Take Your Pick!

September 30, 2012

Glub, glub, glub.  That means good morning in rain talk.  The weather man says that we'll get to see the sun again tomorrow, and then two more days of rain.  Gosh, it will be nice to see the sun again.

Pogo and I haven't been doing much lately.  I've been nursing this cold, and hoping that it will be gone soon.  So far, it doesn't look like it's going anywhere. 

The Mrs had a gorgeous rose growing in her garden, and someone picked it and brought it indoors.  So, I took a photo of it to share here.  I confess, I treated the photo with a bit of Color Efex Pro 4. 

I am amazed at the wonderful things you can do with these different photo editing programs.  It would have been so nice to get into all of this photo stuff when I was much younger.  However, life obviously had other plans for me.

Oh gosh, it's already snowing!!!  Don't get excited - it's snowing in Anchorage, Alaska, not here!  At the same time, Phoenix is 103F, and Los Angeles is in the upper 90's.  Alas, a good portion of Texas and states further East are getting soaked.  What crazy weather! 

Pogo hasn't eaten his breakfast (doggie food), so I'm wondering if he's coming down with my cold.  Oh no.  I will have to cook up a piece of bacon and sprinkle it into his food.  Maybe then he will eat.  Yeah, I know.  It's called bribery.  But all is fair in love and war, and if I have to bribe him to eat, then I will bribe him.  I've even saved some chicken for his dinner later. 

Now, I must get busy here and put in a load of wash.  Tonight is a work night, and I will be wanting some nice clean clothes.  So, Y'all have a wonderful day, and I'll see you in October!

Hugs, Edna B.

Oh Goodie Goodie, More Rain!

September 29, 2012

Happy Saturday morning!  It's a little after 7, and outdoors is looking quite dank and gray.  It rained yesterday and last night, so it's quite wet out there.  The temperature right now is around 57F, and only looking to get up to about 60.  The weather man says that we will have more rain today and tomorrow.  It's great for the gardens, but not so much fun for Pogo and me. 

Pogo is not thrilled about going out in the rain, and getting drowned while he's trying to do his business.  I don't like standing out there and getting soaked while he finds just the right place to go.  I keep telling him to use that nice potty patch that I bought for him, but so far he just doesn't seem to have a clue. 

This week's theme for Photo Art Friday was to make an abstract with your photos.  I'm not really much of an abstract artist, nor does it excite me very much, but I did play around a bit with a couple of photos.  After a couple of hours, I ended up with something that I rather liked.  I wish I could tell you all the different textures, filters and blends I used, but after a while I could not remember what I had done to the photo.  I think I tried all of Photoshop's filters and blends.  So, here's my Blue Butterfly.

Maybe later today I will be able to work on the October collab kit.  I had quite a bit of it made, but alas it was on the drive that died.  All the resources that I was using were on that drive too.  So now I'm back to square one.  Oh well, life happens!

In another hour or so, I have to get dressed and go to the bank.  A lot of my bills have to go in the mail this morning.   Then I can get busy working on my holiday gift list.  I have a few things on order already.  Thank goodness for the internet and on-line shopping.  It's amazing how time flies by when you have things to do.   However, have you noticed how slowly the cold weather leaves us?    It's about the only thing that doesn't fly by.

Well, I think I'll have me a cup of coffee now and do a bit of blog reading.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Time To Get Back On Track

September 28, 2012

Good morning.  It's rather gray and damp this morning.  Actually, it's raining off and on, but at the moment the rain is light.  I tried begging off work this morning, but could not find anyone willing to fill in for me.  So what else is new?  I was hoping to get lots of rest and maybe get rid of this cold that is blossoming.  Ah well, there's that old saying "There's no rest for the sick and weary".

The good part is that I can go home early, around noon time.  This will be good because then maybe I can stop on the way and pick up a few things that we need at the house.  I've been quite neglectful about doing the household shopping these past couple of weeks, and now it's time for me to get back on track.

I want to spend some time going through some of my past photos to pick out something for the November competitions at the camera club.  This time the entries have to be printed and matted, and the deadline for entering is October 9th.  I'm not sure why things are due so far in advance of the competition, but that's how it is.  On October 9th, I should also find out how my last entry made out.

Today I will share a couple of photos that I was playing around with last night in my new software program.  This first photo is an open silk weed pod.  The first photo was done in Photoshop, and the second one was done in Color Efex Pro 4.  They were both lightened a tiny bit with PS curves because the photo was taken in the shade and was quite dark.

My next photo is one that I showed you a few days ago.  I re-did it again in Photoshop for this first shot, and then I did it with Color Efex Pro 4.  The differences are subtle, and I like them both.

Each of these programs has some wonderful features.  So it is no surprise that they work so well together to make a beautiful picture.  My new program works with Photoshop 5 and up.  I will have to check to see if it works with an older version, or if it works with Photoshop Elements, and will let you know.  I got the "complete" version and paid $90 for it.  As far as I'm concerned, it is worth the price.

Now it's time for me to get busy here.  The Mrs will be waking soon and my work will begin.  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

This New Program Is Quite Interesting

September 27, 2012

Good morning.  It's 4:40 a.m., and I'm sitting here at the kitchen table at work.  I thought I might catch a few winks while the Mrs was sleeping, but it just wasn't in the cards.  When the Mrs has an appointment, she gets very anxious and is difficult to calm down sometimes. 

She was told yesterday that she had a morning appointment today.  Therefore, beginning at 3:30 this morning, she has been agitated and upset because I won't get her up and ready for her appointment.  I told her that it was still night time and that her appointment was still many hours away, but she just gets argumentative and does not want to listen.   Eventually, she fell back to sleep. 

We've suggested to the family that they not tell her about appointments until the day they are for, but no one wants to listen.  Mainly it's because they are not here to see how she behaves once she knows about an appointment.  Ah well, the joys of the "golden years".

Earlier tonight after the Mrs was in bed, I installed my new software program "Color Efex Pro 4" and played a while to see what it does.  Basically, I practiced on two photos.  The Color Efex Pro 4 does with one click, what Photoshop does after I spend some time playing with it.  Hmmm, interesting!

Here's the first photo I tried.  This is one of Dee Dee's roses.  First is the original, and the second photo was done with one click in Color Efex Pro 4.

Next, is one of my roses.  The photo was taken half in the shade so it wasn't really a very good photo.  The first is the original, the second was spruced up a bit in Photoshop, and the third photo was done with one click in Color Efex Pro 4.

The differences in these photos is really quite interesting.  I think I shall enjoy exploring this program and discovering all the different things that it can do.  I comes with a few videos that teach you how to use it, plus a user guide. 

It's after 5 a.m. now, and Pogo is starting to sniff around.  This makes me nervous because I don't want him to decide to pee on the Mrs' floor.  I guess it's time to take him outdoors for a sprinkle.  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a fabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.

A New Program To Learn

September 26, 2012

Good afternoon.  We are on a run of cloudy, rainy days with a speck of sunshine every now and then.  It's still warm though, in the 70's, so I'm still happy with the weather. 

Last night's camera club meeting was better than the week before.  The guest speaker showed us some of his collection of Macro photos, and Hunt's camera shop had reps there with products for sale.  I bought me "Color Efex Pro 4".    Today I went on line and bought me a manual to learn how to use the program.  I thought these might cheer me up somewhat.

Wayne came by last night and picked up my dead drive.  He was all doom and gloom about having any hopes for saving anything.  I think I'm going to make me a stuffed effigy of Wayne holding an external drive, and burn it in the driveway if he fails.  This won't really help, but thinking about it is sort of fun.

I guess according to Wayne, I should be backing up on as many hard drives as I possibly can.  They can't all burn out at the same time.  Geesh!  Like I have nothing else to do with  my time!

Oh dear, I just got a phone call asking me to go in to work tonight.  I was planning on a nice quiet night of TV, but I said I would go in.  This will give me next Saturday night off.  Not a bad trade.

Yesterday, Pogo and I walked around the yard, and I got lots of photos of all the butterflies that were enjoying the butterfly bushes.  I even managed to get a shot of one of the butterflies on his way to the bush. 

Seeing as how I will be working tonight, I need to get busy here and do a few things, like run the vacuum cleaner and wash the dishes.  So, I'm off now.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

I'm Fallng Out Of Love With Technology

September 25, 2015

Good afternoon.  You know something?  You folks are great.  No matter how bad things get, you always have encouraging words and thoughts.  It really does help.  This latest drive crash put me in a really bad tailspin.  But I'm getting to the point where I know everything on the drive is gone for good, and I have to figure out how to go from here. 

All my new designs and work was on that drive.  All my newest resources from the last six months was on that drive.  All my photographs since June were on that drive.  All my previous backups were on that drive.  Folks, don't buy Seagate hard drives. 

For years, I have stayed with Seagate drives because they seemed to behave much better than the other brands.  Well, guess what?  I'm wrong!  The last two laptops that crashed and the last two external hard drives that crashed were Seagates!!!

I used to back up everything on CD's and DVD's, but have found that they won't always work on the next new pc or laptop that you buy.  So now I have tons of stuff backed up on discs that isn't doing me much good. 

Technology seems to be thriving, but it doesn't seem to care about saving anything.  To me, that's sad.  We as consumers listen to the sales pitches and buy the products with a false sense of security.  The really good stuff is not sold to the consumer.  Instead it sits in just a few labs, waiting for us consumers to run into problems and then it can charge us ungodly prices to fix these messes. 

I called Seagate to see about retrieving all my lost data.  For a measly $1000, they will give it a try.  BUT, there is no promise that they will be able to retrieve much if anything.  They just will give it a try.  They do have cheaper prices that start around $600 and up.  I called Best Buy, asked the same questions, and got pretty much the same answers.  They can't retrieve any lost data, and would have to send the drive out to the manufacturer.  For the same prices!!!  With the same No Guarantee!!

When I asked each company why the prices for retrieval attempts were so expensive, they told me that it was because the equipment they needed to use was very costly.  Amazing!  If I were a criminal, the police wouldn't have any problem retrieving all my lost data to make sure there wasn't some incriminating evidence there.  But I'm not a criminal, so that's that!

Wayne will pick up my drive later today to see if he can do anything.  But,  he is not holding out any hope either.  I threatened to take him off my favorite persons list and my Christmas card list, but he just laughed at me and said "Oh well!" 

All my beautiful photos of Pogo are gone.  Boo Hoo.  It's losing all my photos and art projects that hurts the most.  So, I took a few new photos to share here on my blog.   Here is one of my roses, and a new photo of my precious Pogo. 

The next thing I will be looking into is saving everything in cyber space.  I haven't heard of anyone losing their stuff from cloud storage, so I will have to check it out.  If you know of a better way, please do let me know.  I do use external hard drives, but they are only good until they die.  And they do.  If you don't believe me, ask me and I'll tell you!

I usually start my blog post off with a bit about the day's weather.  Today I did not.  I got up a bit late this morning, with just enough time to get dressed, take Pogo out, and then we hopped into my car and headed off to my appointment at the nail salon.  My poor fingernails have been badly neglected these past few weeks.  But now they look nice again.

As for the weather today, it's an absolutely gorgeous, perfect day!!!  The sun is shining, there's a nice breeze, and the temp is in the 70's.  I really couldn't ask for a better day.  One of the forecasters on the weather channel on TV was saying that we can look forward to another winter very much like the last one.  Cold wise and heating cost wise, I have to say that I am looking forward to another great winter.  I just hope that the rest of the country does not have to go through all the same really bad weather that came to them this whole year.

Tonight, Janet and I are going to our second camera club meeting.  The last one was interesting, but a bit boring.  I'm hoping that tonight's meeting will be more fun.  We shall see.  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a fabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Pts. 5 & 6 "Designer Stash 001"

September 24, 2012

Good morning folks.  I'm not going to be posting much this morning.  Yesteday afternoon, my hard drive (the backup drive that I work on) died and took all my stuff with it.  Needless to say, I am not in the mood for chit chat.  I have no photos, no projects, no photo art, nada.

I did use my brain and went to both this blog and Su's website to download previews, and I was able to go to Mediafire and get the download links for you. 

Your download links:

http://www.mediafire.com/?h0dm7mh91vpksyy
http://www.mediafire.com/?cxy5bx5v2af0zlm

Here is Su's preview.  You will have to visit her website to pick up her parts.

Now I am going to make a cup of coffee and drown my sorrows.  Sorry to sound so negative, but I am at my wits end.  I do not know how to keep any of my digital stuff safe anymore.  The pc crashes, the laptop crashes, the flashdrive crashes and the backup drive crashes.  How many backups do you have to have running at any one time to be sure of keeping your data safe?  I give up. 

I'm off, till next time, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Oooooh What Gorgeous Weather!!

September 23, 2012

Good morning.  Wow, what a gorgeous day we have today.  The sun is shining and it's 70 degrees F.  Absolutely perfect!!  The weatherman is promising us a whole week like this. 

If only you could see what Pogo is up to right now.  He's doing his best to chew up a magazine.  This is really quite difficult when you have no teeth, but he tries hard.  So far, the magazine is winning the fight.  At this point, Pogo turns his attentions to his little yellow duck.  It's much easier to beat up the little duck.  My little guy is feeling so macho this morning!

We have two new dwarfs in our house this week.  I hope they work out because this will make it soooo much easier to get through the winter.  All the biggest bills are due between October 1 and January 1.  Plus the heat creates another big bill.  The new guys seem pretty nice, so we shall see.

Yesterday turned out to be not such a good day for me.  I was busy hopping around here doing things and fell smack down on the floor.  My arm hit the edge of the door, making a purple mess on my arm.  My legs got a bit bruised and lumpy and I got a nice headache.  Needless to say, I didn't go out on a photo walk.  I just picked up a few groceries and hopped under a blanket on the sofa for the rest of the day. 

I''m the middle of doing some laundry but I want to share another nice gull photo.  These birds are so willing to pose for photos.   This particular gull was mostly all medium grey.  Very pretty!

There's not much news for today.  I want to get the laundry finished, and maybe take Pogo for a short walk around the yard.  Later I'll try to catch a nap so that I'm bright eyed and bushy tailed for work tonight.  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a fabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.

The Colors Of Autumn

September 22, 2012

Good morning world.  Today I had planned to do a photo walk, but as with all good plans, Mother Nature has decided to rain on my parade.  Am I complaining and upset?  Nope, not at all.  If the rain (which is really only a drizzle at the moment) lets up, I can go out and walk later.  If not, it's a good day to just crash and be lazy.

I have been feeling crappy all week, so hopefully with another lazy day, I will be feeling better.  The cold that I was catching just seems to linger and brew beneath the skin.  This needs to pass long enough for me to do a bit of grocery shopping.  I need milk so I can eat my cereal.  Sighhhhh, such problems!  lol.

The leaves on the trees are changing colors, so yesterday I tried to get a few photos.  Here's a pretty one of the corn crib across the street at work.

And here's one showing the Fall decorations already up.

Now I'm going to crawl back into my little bed for a while until it's time to go shopping.  Pogo is already there, curled up in a little ball and snoring.  Sounds like heavenly music to my ears.  Till tomorrow, Y'all stay well and have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

p.s.  Today, I published my 1600th post here on Blogger.  Yeah!!!

Happy Autumn!

September 21, 2012

Good morning on this sunny but nippy morning.  Fall begins today, and you can feel that it is definitely here.  I'm still at work and I thought I would post a bit before the Mrs wakes up.   Well, it will be a short post because she just called.

I don't have any photos to share yet, but I now have another great grandbaby.  Mac and Audrey are the proud grandparents of Alena Marie McLain, born this past Tuesday.  Congratulations!!  This is their second grandchild. 

That's about it for the news.  I did manage to submit one of my photos in a competition at the camera club.  I don't know when the competition is, but the deadline for entries was midnight last night.  I'll post more when I get more information. 

Before they are all gone, I thought I would share a photo of some of the pink butterfly bushes here.  I think they are so much prettier than the lavender ones.

I had an article that I wanted to share with you, but first I have to figure out how to upload it in such a way that you can see it.  I'll most likely have to re-type it.  Oh well, not today.

I think the Mrs has dozed off again, but I have to go check to be sure.  If she's till awake, she'll be wanting her breakfast.  So, it's off to work for me.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a fabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Times Have Changed

September 20, 2012

Good morning.  The sun is shining and the temps are in the 60's.  The rainstorm that came through the other night was not so bad, and I actually enjoyed the winds that came with it.  I've been watching my email, hoping to hear from the person at the camera club in charge of competition uploading.  Until they get my email address into the system, I cannot enter any photos.

Tonight will be a long shift at work.  I'll be doing a twenty hour shift, but then I get Saturday night off.  Not a bad trade off.  I was hoping to do a photo walk this Saturday.  The official World Photo Walk Day will be October 13.  I want to participate in that one too.  I just need to decide on locations.

I've been laying low this week, hoping to stave off this cold bug.  So far, it's no better and no worse.  But I do have to catch up on a few things like vacuuming, etc.  I think Pogo may have caught a bit of my cold.  He sounds a bit stuffy sometimes.  I think I'll be making an appointment for a general check up for him, hopefully for next week.

Today, I will call up and get Pogo's health insurance started.  I don't want to be hit with thousands of dollars in medical bills later on down the road.  I've never had pet health insurance before, so this will be another first for me.

Remember that faulty railroad signal that I mentioned a while back?  Well, I think they may have fixed the problem.  On my way home from work one day last week, I had to stop  while a train came through.  I took a photo (don't ask me why - I seem to photograph almost anything!) that I will share with you. 

Notice the "for rent" sign next to the train tracks. The sign is actually in someone's yard. Imagine having a train pass that close to your house?  Also note that there is "Wi-Fi" in the cars.  Wow, how different from when I used to ride the train to and from work in Boston.  That was back in "1950"s".  Things have changed a lot since then.

Now I'm off to get me a cup of coffee, and stuff me into some clothes.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a fabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.

A New Beginning With New Learning

September 19. 2012

Good afternoon.  During the night, I just could not sleep so I got up and did a bit of blog reading.  By 6:45 a.m. I was ready to try for sleep again.   But first, I took Pogo out for his sprinkle.   Unfortunately, this means that I will be sleeping late.  It does not matter though, because there is no rush on for today.

Well, last night Janet and I went to our first camera club meeting.  It was very interesting to say the least.  We watched a slide show on photographing Fall foliage.  There was another slide show on Tuscany. Italy, but it was running late and we had to leave before this second show came on.

I did learn a couple of interesting things from the first slide show.  First, when photographing the foliage, you don't necessarily need to focus on the foliage.  You can use the foliage as a backdrop for a different focus.  This can make some very pretty photographs.

Second, I learned that Nikon cameras tend to produce really hot colors and you have to tone them down quite a bit when you do your editing.  At least this is what our featured photographer speaker found to be true about his Nikon.  (Mine is a Canon)

The club does have several competitions, and this is what I am interested in.  Actually, they have a competition coming up but the deadline for entries in tomorrow night at midnight.  I don't think I have enough time to enter any photos.  Today, I will try  to contact one of the members to see if I can maybe enter at least one photo.

I will say one thing, these folks at the camera club do a lot of traveling.  There's an upcoming cruise to Bermuda, a trip to Italy next month, yada yada.  The traveling sounds nice, but I'm not ready for any of that.  I would like some short trips to the surrounding states, so I will watch for these little trips.

One of the things that was mentioned at the meeting was Portfolio Project.  The photos for this project are taken over several months, and presented as a cohesive portfolio.  The purpose of this, I assume, is to showcase the photographers chosen field of interest.  I happen to prefer shooting photos of nature, but will, of course, photograph anything else that that interests me.  I definitely think I would like to try this project.

Today, I have a couple of photos to share that I took at work.  This first photo is one of the Mrs' roses that is frosted with morning dew.  The second photo shows a golden finch enjoying a tasty snack on the black eyed susans by the side of road.

Now I have a few things to do around here.  After all, if I want to play I must do a little housework in between.  lol.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Time For Your Flu Shot!

September 18, 2012

Good morning from "about to be soggy" New England.  Yup, lots of rain coming.  Tonight is supposed to be quite stormy right into tomorrow morning.  Goodie goodie.

Yesterday, I had my check up with the doctor and got my flu shot while I was there.  I did learn something new.  The flu shot will not give you the flu because it is a dead virus.   If you get the flu after receiving the shot, then you already had the virus in you.  However, if you get the vaccine in your nose, you can get the flu because this is a live virus. 

This is good information to know.  I have been fighting off a cold these past few days, and was afraid that getting the shot might bring on a nasty case of the flu.  Seeing as how I already have some sort of cold bug, the doctor phoned in an antibiotic for me just in case.  I usually get very sick with colds and flu because of my asthma.  This time I am ready for it!

This morning I have some photos that I took at the park a few days ago.  There were only a few Canadian Geese left at the pond, but the ducks and seagulls were thriving. 

 

Tonight Janet and I will be going to our first camera club meeting.  This will be my first time to step out for something new since my Michael has been gone.  He was my cheering section and was always encouraging me to try new things.  So I am really looking forward to tonight.

 

Now I  think I will start making the meat sauce for tonight's supper.  We're having pasta.  Mmmmmm!   I think I'll put a little bit of cut up macaroni in Pogo's food too.  Just to spruce it up a bit.  Speaking of Pogo, he is looking so cute this morning in his purple hoodie.  He's been outside, had his breakfast, and is curled up in a tiny little ball right here next to me.  I am so blessed.

 

That's all the news for this morning.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

 

Hugs, Edna B.

More Designer Stash For You

September 17, 2012

I'm at work this morning, and will be leaving in a while to go home.  I have a check up appointment this morning with the doctor, so I hope any rain that is due will hold off for a few hours. 

I had some problems getting in to my blog this morning again.  It seems Blogger has ben making a few more changes, and is encouraging everyone to embrace all the new stuff.  It would be nice if they do not make all these changes mandatory.  If they do, I may have to blog somewhere else. 

This morning, I have a photo for Mandarin Orange Monday.  I took this photo a few days ago, and saved it for today.  Pogo is such a cutie,  that I can't help but take photos of him.  On this particular day, he was taking in the afternoon sun.  He just loves the sunshine.  Makes me wonder just how much sun he got to enjoy during his first six years.  Anyway, here's Pogo in his orange hoodie, taking in some nice warm sunshine.

I also have two more parts of our collab kit, "Designer Stash 001".    I hope you can use these, because we are planning to do more of these CU kits. 

Here are your download links:

http://www.mediafire.com/?0uggm2rq5nyp9qn

http://www.mediafire.com/?kpc6q1s8s166hkk

Don't forget to stop by Su's site later this morning and pick up her two parts.  While you're there, do say hello.   Here is her preview.

If you have a camera, and you love to take pictures, don't forget that the World Photo Walk Day is coming soon.   I believe it's Saturday, October 13.  If you can't join a group, just take a friend or go alone.  Just pick a spot, and walk around for a while taking photos of all the interesting things around you.   Last year, I went to Plymouth Harbor.  This year, I think I may go north of Boston. 

Now it's time for me to check the Mrs again, and then pack up my things to get ready to head on home.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

WAY TO GO, KOOLAID!!!

September 16, 2012

Good morning from my little part of New England.  Today is sunny and a bit on the cool side.  Our temps are on a cool downside.  Half of the upcoming week will be in the 70's, then the rest of the week will be in the 60's.  Yup, Autumn is definitely right around the corner. 

I got an email this morning from Dee Dee giving me the run down on Koolaid's (Kevin) baseball games yesterday.  He plays on two teams, and had two games yesterday.  In the first game, he got up three times and got a triple, a double and a single, bringing in two runs.  In the second game, he got up twice, getting a triple and a home run!!!    They lost one game, and won one game.  Kevin had a fabulous day, and the coach remarked how the Red Sox would be drafting a new short stop soon!!!

You might not be into baseball, but I just have to brag a little every now and then.  This grandson of mine is a fantastic baseball player.  He can pitch, hit, run and steal bases.  He's also very good at football and basketball, but he excels in baseball.  Congratulations Koolaid!!

Gosh, this morning I am just chock full of good news.  (what a nice change!)  Daughter in law, Janet, and I applied to a camera club, and we go to our first meeting this coming Tuesday night.  I'm a bit nervous about it, but am anxious to meet new folks and learn more about photography.

Next piece of good news is that the deer were out in the field across from work this morning.  I don't get to see them very often anymore because of all the new houses being built.  Half of the huge field where the deer usually like to roam is now occupied by a new house.  It's so sad, that with all the homes available for sale why people have to use up more of the wildlife space to build new homes. 

Here's Momma deer crossing from one side of the field to check out the new house and strange toys in the other half of the field.  Following closely behind are her two young ones.  I just love watching these beautiful animals.

Well, my coffee is almost gone now, so I think it's time to get some sleep.  Tonight is another work night.  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a fabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Go Get Em, Tiger!

September 15, 2012

Good morning.  It's 8 a.m. and it's quite gray outside.  I do believe we are expecting some rain today.  The temperature is about 68 F, and should get up into the mid 70's later on.  Not too shabby! 

It's good news time.  Pogo is starting to learn to play with toys.  I bought him a little orange dog with a squeaker in it, and he actually plays with it.  So far, he can't make it squeak, but if you squeak it for him, he will attack it and toss it in the air.  It is so much fun to watch him at play.

I took these photos to show just how funny he can be.  He's so ferocious looking.   If he had any teeth, the little toy dog would be in shreds by now.  I just love this first photo that shows Pogo leaping towards the little dog.

I'm watching the weather channel, and it's very interesting.  Today Minneapolis will be in the 80's, and then drop to the low 60's by tomorrow and Monday.  The weatherman says they might even look for some snowflakes.  Is he kidding?  It's too darn early for snow!!!

The other day, the weatherman was saying that we might be expecting another winter like last year.  I can handle the winter when it is not too severe as long as it doesn't mean another drought year.

 Again, I have to get back on my bandbox and wonder why the politicians haven't come up with the idea for a water pipeline.  We could have re-directed all those flood waters to the arid parts of the country.  Homes and lives, and crops and livestock would have been saved.  People would have been put back to work, and the economy would have gotten a much needed shot in the arm. 

I think I should go make another cup of coffee and maybe do a little housework.  Tonight it's back to work.  Sighhhhh.  I heard a new word the other day.  "Retire"  I'm going to have to look this up.  lol.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

The Beauty All Around Me

September 14, 2012

Good morning.  It's a bit chilly this morning, but later it will get up to the low 80's.  Boy, that will feel really good!   I'm at work so this will have to be a short post.  Mrs will be waking soon, and then I will have to get busy here. 

Today I want to post my collage for Photo Art Friday.  I had to  come up with a seven word sentence that says something about me, and then match it to some sort of photo art.  This took a bit of thinking but in the end, it all came down to the beauty all around me.  I have always been in awe of nature's wonders, and I love music.  So here is my creation.

I started with a photo of flowers, then added in parts of three other photos.  The butterfly, the bird and Pogo.   I first applied the dusty rose bokeh texture from PDPA, then the "hue" blending mode from Photoshop.  When I was finished, I brushed in some music to complete the picture.

Now I have to get back to work.  Mrs is stirring and will be calling me soon.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

A Strange New Bug

September 13, 2012

Good morning.   Well, the cold isn't too bad, but I'm not winning the battle with the fleas.  I use the Frontline Plus on Pogo, a couple of flea baths a week, constant spraying on the carpet and furniture, vacuuming, etc.  It has been suggested that I put a flea powder on Pogo before he goes outside, but I'm afraid he might lick some of it off and get sick. 

I'm going to have to ask the doctor what I can do next, plus I will go online to see if there are herbs  that I can use to keep the fleas out of the house.  I also  have to call and reschedule my doctor (check up) appointment.  Today we have no babysitter, and I don't want to leave Pogo alone that long.

Today I have to share some photos that I took of a strange looking insect that we found in my yard a few days ago.   I looked it up on Google, but the closest I could come to was a "Red Wasp".  If you know what it is, do let me know. 

Joe first noticed this creature in the grass when he almost stepped on it.  We thought possibly it might have been laying eggs.  After a few minutes, it turned upside down and disappeared underneath the grass.  Seeing as how the grass wasn't very tall, I'm thinking that it went underground.  We did not see it fly off.  Strange!

Now I have to go make a phone call, and then get breakfast for Pogo.   He's been lying here next to me waiting patiently.  Gosh, he is just the cutest!  So, till tomorrow, Y'all have a fabulous day.

Hugs, Edna B.

A Head Cold And Fleas. Life Is Good!

September 12, 2012

Well, it's good afternoon here.  This morning, I got up to take Pogo out and then crawled right back into bed.  For some reason, yesterday evening I was feeling rather cold.  This morning, I was feeling like a head cold coming on.  Oh goodie goodie, just what I need right about now.  This is not a good time of year to be getting a cold.

Today, the sun is shining and the temp is in the low 70's.  Just right for being outdoors!  Maybe Pogo and I will have us a stroll around the yard this afternoon.  I do have a bit of laundry to and it can't really wait.  When Pogo goes outside, the fleas ride back indoors with him.  This just adds to the amount of laundry, and of course probably another flea bath for Pogo. 

Well, the new bulbs got planted yesterday afternoon.  Joe and Pogo and I went out to the garden to decide where  to plant them.  And yes, the Cayenne Pepper was used.  I'll put a little more down today too.  Just because.  Maybe next year we'll have orange, pink and blue irises, and some beautiful parrot tulips.

I have a beautiful peace rose to share with you today.  It has all delicate tones of yellow, peach, cream and pink.  Very pretty.

Here's the same flower right after a gentle spraying (Joe was watering the garden).  I just love how things look covered in water drops.  Isn't this pretty?

Last night I worked a bit on next year's calendar, and then I worked on some new photo art.  I can't show it to you just yet because it's for the next Friday Photo Art.  This one took a lot of thought.  The theme for this week is to make a photo collage that says something about what I am in seven words.

Several years ago, Walmart had cute lightweight vacuum cleaners on sale for $35.  Seeing as the brand name was Dirt Devil, I bought one and put it away for a time when it would be needed.  In the main part of the house, appliances are replaced more frequently than mine.  I already had a good vacuum that my brother had bought for me.

This past year, things are feeling heavier to me, so I put my big vacuum out into the main part of the house, and now I use the little Dirt Devil.  Wow, it is so much easier now to do the vacuuming! 

My friend Kyra's cat Dikki Dik is not doing so well.  Gosh, I know the pain of when our furry babies are not feeling well, and they can't tell us what is wrong.  Pogo and I are hoping that Dikki Dik is feeling better real soon. 

Now I'm going to get busy and start the laundry.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Decisions, Decisions.

September 11, 2012

It's 7 a.m. and the sun is not up yet.  It's quite gray and cool too, only around 54 F heading towards the low 70's later.   I'm thinking that Pogo and I might want to crawl back into bed for another hour or two.

Speaking of Pogo, he is finally beginning to explore the world of playing.  Yesterday, he actually walked up to the big ball that we have, and gave it a couple of quick pokes.  It will be so good one day to see him running around after a ball.

After a bit of playing and exploring, Pogo crawled into his little bed and curled up for a nap.  It was such a cute sight that I grabbed the camera and got some photos.  I just have to share this one.

As you can see, he is also attempting to play with this little yellow duck.  He actually moved it several times.  I also got another cute photo of Pogo to share.  He was just sitting and looking up at me. 

I also took some photos of my new "Welcome" plant stand that Dee Dee got for me.  It's quite pretty, and will look good indoors later when it's too cold to leave the plants outside.

The plant was one of my indoor house plants that was trying desperately to stay alive.  When the warm weather began, I put the plant outdoors to see if it would help.  It looks like the whole original plant has expired, and all the new stuff is courtesy of the birds. 

I think I've decided on an idea for next year's calendar.  I just might use all photo art pictures for it.  I think.  I'm not sure.  Right now, it's just a thought, and I still have time to make a final decision.  This is the hardest part for me, deciding what type of photos to use.  Ah well, we shall see.

Now I think I'm going to join Pogo on the sofa for a little more sleep time, or maybe just to snuggle under the green blanket and watch TV for a while.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Parts 1 & 2 "Designer Stash 001"

September 10, 2012

Good morning.  It's still quite dark outside, only 5:50 a.m.  Mrs has been having an off night.  She's very confused and argumentitive this morning.  The good part though, is that she slept through most of the night. 

This is supposed to be a gorgeous week with lots of sun and temps in the 70's to low 80's,  Gosh, I think I can handle that!  lol.  Last night, Su and I got to chat for a while and decide on upcoming collab kits.  She is such a smart lady.  I always learn something new and interesting when we chat. 

In answer to a question yesterday about the Cayenne Pepper and how to use it,  basically you just sprinkle it on the dirt around the plants (or where the bulbs are planted.  I might even put a little bit in each hole where the bulbs are.  After rain or watering, you would have to re-apply the cayenne pepper. 

This morning, I have an offering for Mandarin Orange Monday.  I do love the color orange, so I changed this beautiful yellow rose to an even more beautiful orange.  Then I removed the background and replaced it with one of my own textures (#4599).  The rose itself is on it's own layer.  After that, I applied another texture (#142 from frostbo-d5ahct).  Sorry about that name, but that's what was given.  Next, I applied the "difference" mode in Photoshop.

Oh lookee.  the sky is getting light - Day is breaking!  That means that I'll be going home soon.  This is a fun part of the day for me.  As soon as Pogo hears my car pull in the drive, he gets all excited waiting for the door to open.  Then he runs lickety split to the doorway and jumps up into my arms and gives me kisses.  Gee, I think he likes me!

Now for the first two parts of the September collab kit "Designer Stash 001".  We thought we would be different this time and offer you a CU kit.  If you like it, we have plans for more in the future.  Here is my preview and the links for Parts 1 & 2.

http://www.mediafire.com/?1ws7rgop65sq573

http://www.mediafire.com/?o6b4kkeghxcp53z

And here is Su's preview.  You will have to visit her site to download her parts, which should be posted later this morning.  Do take a moment to stop and say thank you.  It is so appreciated.

I just checked Su's blog address, and it is down for the moment.  If you find it down when you go there, do give it a few moments and try again.  Thanks so much.

Now it's time for me to check on the Mrs again, and pack up my things to get ready to go home.  Till tomorrow, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.

Just Call Me "Duh"!

September 9, 2012

Good morning.  It's quite soggy around here because it rained on and off all night long.  I must say, though, that the sun is doing it's best to come out and shine. 

I seem to be having more than my share of "duh" moments lately.  Just last night, I packed my work bag, put in my little laptop, and took out the mouse that goes with it.  So of course, once I had the Mrs tucked into bed, and took out my little laptop to play a bit, I got a surprise.  No mouse!  I could not use the touch pad (which I don't like to use) because I've had it turned off and could not figure out how to turn it back on.  Duh!

I took Pogo out for a walk around the yard yesterday, and took some new photos of the flowers that were blooming.  I also got photos of another dragonfly and some other "buggy" insect.  This one I have to look up on Google to see what it is.  I'm thinking it's a wasp or hornet, but I want to make sure before I share it's photo.

Here's the dragonfly.  He was a bit flighty, and only sat for a second or two before he flew off over the fence. 

And here's a pretty shot of my Rose Of Sharon.  I tried to buy more of these plants at Home Depot a few days ago, but they had none.  I'll have to keep trying.

Today, we were going to plant some new bulbs in the garden, but it's quite soggy out there.  Maybe tomorrow afternoon will be a better time for this.  The gorgeous orange, pink and blue iris bulbs that we planted last year were eaten by some hungry rodents, along with most of the other bulbs that we planted.  The other day, I bought new iris bulbs (same as the ones that we lost) and some parrot tulip bulbs. 

I have my large container of cayenne pepper that we will sprinkle all around these new bulbs.  Hopefully, this will keep most of the bulbs safe from the rodents.  Also, we haven't seen the fisher cats for quite a while now, so maybe they've found a new place to live.  Oh yes, that would be nice.

I'm keeping a close eye on the weather channel on TV.  A couple of tornadoes touched down on land in New York yesterday, and we've all had severe weather warnings.   Mother Nature isn't ready to slide into Fall without lashing out a bit. 

Right now, I'm going to see about making some breakfast, and then maybe have a nice nap.  Tonight is another work night, and then I'll be off again till Friday.  Tomorrow, I'll be posting the first two parts of the September collab kit.  Till then, Y'all have a wonderful day.

Hugs, Edna B.