Woo-hoo!

Go me!

I had been promising myself and my friends that one day I would publish a book. I finally have: Pluto's Promise, which is available at Amazon.com. It is a story about a group of travelers from a dying planet who have to deal with a number of issues in settling a new world with what appears to be inadequate preparation. Going back isn't an option, of course. It's only a short story, so I will let you read that for yourself.

I do have several other items in the works. I'll make sure to keep you posted!

Good Morning, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Morning Glow. I originally intended to use an image I made of a slightly-stylized clockface, but this one caught my eye first. Considering how few people really enjoy the time changes, I thought this might help my readers feel better.

I spent part of last night working on a pattern for my mother to use with her jewelry business. However, I kept running across a quirk that kept the images from transferring and forming as I wished them to. I'll keep trying a little bit longer, but if it doesn't work I'll try a different approach. In fact, I may anyway just to see what will happen. In the meanwhile, I do have some shiny new software to try out! Maybe I can get some better results with that.

Until we meet, Gentle Readers.

Love Letter to Heaven

Good evening, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Cradle. I made it for a friend who was feeling very down at the time. While I do not remember exactly what had happened, I do remember that he felt much better after receiving this.

Some of you may remember that I mentioned my Dad dying of brain cancer. I had hoped he would get to watch me Walk across the stage for my ceremony, but that didn't happen- at least, not in this life.

However, he has a far better place to watch from in Heaven now. His eyes, always a startling blue, will be able to see clearly. He did know I was studying hard. If I should find myself needing to make a speech- Dad, this is for you.

It wasn't always sunshine and roses between us. Show me any relationship that is, and I'll show you one that is completely fake. But the love was genuine, even when it was stormy. I still have your screwdrivers from your days as a truck driver, and I look at them while thinking about your traveler's tales. When I go to see Mother, I look at your picture with Jimmy in your lap. Your face in that picture is the one I thought of the last time I saw you on Earth.

Don't worry, Dad. You've passed the torch to those of us who stayed behind.

End of the old year, Begining of the new

Good evening, Gentle Readers!

It has been a while since I've posted here. Much has happened since the last time I did regularly, some happy and some not so.

My father has died after a short but vicious fight with brain cancer. I wanted to believe that maybe he could be cured- but the last time I saw him alive, I knew that wasn't going to happen. Mother and Aunt Shirley tell me his passing was peaceful. I imagine that now he is running and playing with Georgie, his favorite dog.

Shortly afterwards, Hurricane Sandy roared through. Oddly enough, my little corner of the world wasn't effected much, other than the usual thunder, lightning, wind, and rain. Points north of me were another story, though- especially after the storm melded with a blizzard. My friends on Facebook have said they've never seen anything like it. Most of the clean-up from that storm has been accomplished, though, for which I am grateful; One of the friends effected has a year-old baby girl. The baby thought it was some kind of great big game.

Now for the biggest piece of news: On January 13, I will have successfully completed my Bachelor's studies! It was a long wild ride, but I met some amazing people on the way. With my studies out of the way, I will be able to focus on getting a business up and running. Once that is accomplished, I will announce it here so you can go see for yourselves.

Until we meet...

White Wine In The Sun by Tim Minchin

Nine- Eleven

Good Evening, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is one of my early works, and has been displayed before. It, like the title of the post, is named Nine- Eleven. While it is slightly stylized to accommodate the capacity of the tools I used to make it, one can see the towers and flames.

On this day, we remember our lost. Some of those who witnessed the event were still children. Others who now see the documentaries and tributes were not even born yet. These children- and yes, even the adults- live in the shadows of these acts of terrorism.

Certainly, I do not agree with some of the new rules and regulations enacted supposedly to combat terrorism. In my opinion, many of these rules and regulations not only will not detect terrorists, they will harass law-abiding citizens and limit their ability to legally defend themselves should such events occur again.

Yet, because of the heroes that rose that day, I am free to express my objections. And we are all free to heal and move on beyond the ashes. While we survived terrible losses, we also learned valuable lessons. Let us use those lessons now.

Until We Meet...

Hurricane: Aftermath

Good evening, Gentle Readers!

There will be no image with tonight's post. At present, I am taking advantage of the library's connection to the Internet. Unfortunately, that means I have to forego some of the goodies.

The hurricane has hit, and hit hard. Oddly enough, my especial little corner of the world has not been hit as hard as some- but it is still an experience I am not eager to repeat.

Still, I did get to observe some wonderful things. The girls next door- whose home had a tree fall on it- are wonderful, smart, hard-working children. Bless their wee hearts, they came running to help clean up my yard, since they couldn't do much with theirs. After that, my husband and I put the underpinning back up on the trailer. While that project took a while, it didn't take as long as he feared. The neighbors on the other side watched out for our place as well as they could during the worst of the winds; My husband and I had taken shelter with my parents, much to the displeasure of the kitty contingent. They wouldn't have been any happier at home, though; They don't like storms.

The mood of the neighborhood was almost festive as everyone in the neighbor cleaned up and started putting their lives back together. We even got treated to the sight of an ice cream truck jingling down the road.

The second day was a bit more mundane, but a couple of gentlemen came by to clear the tree of the neighbors' home. One of them saw me chopping at a blown-over scrub tree with a hatchet and finished the job with a chain saw- a far quicker proposition! We were told to expect at least a week before we could get power back.

The local power outages were very strange indeed. It was more of a patchwork of outages than the usual pattern of clearly-defined areas. The holes without power are being closed as quickly as the power company can get to it, but some areas will need new poles.

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

Daily Update 2

Greetings again, Gentle Readers.

This image is titled Chelcie. I made it for a young lady who was celebrating a birthday when I was introduced to her. I admit that I did have some difficulty finding a color balance that would match her without screaming, but the effect is quite soothing as well.

I was just listening to the radio for storm updates when the transmission suddenly stopped and was replaced by static. That's not unusual in itself; While the MCs don't say so, I'm under the impression that the equipment is a bit dated and buggy. What concerns me is that the staff is having trouble getting the transmissions back up. It may be something as harmless as a little rain getting into the wires or casings, and the crew not being quite as polished as that of some other stations.

The wind is a little stronger now, and the area is under a tornado watch or warning. Oddly enough, I'm seeing relatively little rain at the moment. I'm going to check on the status of the Dismal Swamp fires shortly; Hopefully those will be out.

Until We Meet...

The Storm Starts

Good Morning, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Sunlit Band. The reasoning behind the name is pretty much self-explanatory. I was experimenting with copying bezier lines one day so I could create parallel curves, and this is the result. I will have to go back and see what else I can do.

Right now, I am seeing wind and rain from Irene, but I am not seeing a real threat. I'm not holding onto any illusions that this will last; Right now, only the leading edge of the storm is here. She isn't exactly a speed demon, so we are looking at hours yet and might not see an end until tomorrow. The only thing I've unpacked is the coffee maker, and that's because I am hopelessly addicted to caffeine! That will be going back in a travel box when I'm done with it.

I'm also thinking I should make some eggs for breakfast; If we lose power, anything still in the refrigerator will be gone, so we might as well enjoy what we have.

Stay safe, Gentle Readers!

Until We Meet...

Hurricane preparations

Good afternoon, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Intertwining. I chose it for today's post because I find it soothing.

Right now, soothing is good; Irene is scheduled to come knocking tomorrow. I'm in the middle of making preparations to bug out because unlike some of the earlier hurricanes, she has me a bit jumpy. I've packed toiletries, cleaned the house and washed laundry, and even packed a few cleaning supplies in a bucket just in case. All that is left is the clothing and the kitties. We may have to tear apart their hiding places to get them- but there is no way we're going to leave them behind. I'm thinking if the storm is too dangerous for grown humans, it's too dangerous for a pair of cats who haven't been outside since they were kittens.

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

Updates and things

Good Evening, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Static. I wasn't really sure what I wanted to call it, so I used a place-holder until I could make up my mind.

Another few courses have come and gone, each more challenging than the last. Right now, my brain is screaming for mercy! I don't dare let up tonight or tomorrow, though.

The past week has been anything but boring; A friend of mine is in the middle of a move. Hopefully, she is getting settled in by now. A couple of days ago, we even had an earthquake: A small one, but my area of the country isn't used to those beasties! The cats hid for quite a while afterwards, though they did creep out for dinner.

And now for the real reason for my hurry; A hurricane is headed my way. To be specific, Hurricane Irene. I've no idea if we will even have power when she passes, so I have to get as much done as I can before she hits. The size of the reading assignments isn't helping: I've been gnawing my way through some four chapters of textbook, large chapters at that. I also have at least that many items to read from the college site.

I will keep you posted as things develop. Wish me luck, Gentle Readers!

Until We Meet...

School- What a Wild Ride!

Good Morning, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is simply called Intertwining. I had been away from my artwork for a while when I made this and so had to remind myself of what a few of the filters would do. However, as you can see the break has not hurt the end product any.

I'm not too happy with a couple of the programs with the college right now. There is one that I am supposed to use to learn how to make various graphs and histograms- but the thing keeps freezing every time I try to perform the assignment, especially when I have the right answers and am trying to display them. I've written tech support about the issue, but I'm not betting on them getting back to me in time.

In better news, I did get my portion of the team assignment in. Not only that, Charlene Dunfee- The instructor for this especial course- has really gone out of her way to keep morale up in the face of a number of outages that have made an already difficult class even harder. Yay Professor!

I need to download the material for my next course some time today; I don't think I'll have much time to tomorrow. The next couple of days will be very busy!

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

Looking Out My Window

Good Evening, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Circles and Sunlight. I forget exactly what I was thinking of when I made this; It might have been another experiment with overlays. In any case, I thought it to be a nice cheerful piece.

Another course has come and gone. This course was not easy either; Subject matter aside, the portal to the school kept crashing for several days, right when my teammates and I were trying to assemble a project. None of us were pleased. Nor was the instructor. Even before the technicians asked her to give us extra time to work because of the issues, she had told us she would give us an extra day to work. I spent a lot of nights sitting up reading and taking notes long after most sane people would have gone to bed. I think now I am just about where I should be- but next week is the beginning of another course. I honestly don't think all of those complicated formulas for calculating statistics have much to do with my ultimate goals. If anything, I think they needlessly complicate matters. But I could be wrong, so I keep trying to learn.

I did a few things outside my window that I thought were well worth cheering over. The neighbor whom my husband and I share a driveway with had had a car up on blocks for well over a year. The previous vehicle that had been on those blocks had quietly rusted away, until a tow truck had to come and remove it. But today, this vehicle came down off of its blocks, and moved up and down the road under its own power! It sounded pretty good too! So the youngest resident of the abode next to me has her own vehicle again!

We also have a new feline that seems to have included our yard as part of his territory. I heard something rustling around outside a couple of days ago and had to work to suppress a growl; A number of the neighborhood kids have displayed a remarkable lack of courtesy when it comes to anyone's homes and yards other than their own. But some of these kids are pretty smart too, and deserve a chance to learn more than the schools are willing to teach them. While I'm not really a motherly sort, I was just wondering if maybe I should try to set up something with them where we could do homework together. One of the girls- a bright young lady who unfortunately has a brother who needs his britches warmed with a switch- was quite surprised and impressed when she learned I was in college. She was very pleased to tell me how her momma helps her with her math, among other things. As for the kitty, he's not sure what to make of me. But as long as he behaves himself, he's welcome to come hunt moles and things as much as he wants.

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

Riding the Storm Out

Good Afternoon, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Sunshine Waves. I made it about a week ago as a welcoming present to a new baby cousin. I was a little bit surprised at the effect; It was not quite what I was aiming for. However, I was also pleased because it is an effect I had been wanting to create for a few of my other images.

You may have noticed I have not been writing regularly for a few weeks. The fact is that I have had very little to say, especially about my last class. I am not the only one who viewed it as something of a nightmare. I did get a better grade than I thought I would, but I, for one, would not wish to repeat that most especial course with that most especial instructor.

I do have a better feeling about this course. In fact, it seems to be heavily based on the Critical Thinking course I took several months ago. I still have the hard-copy text of that if I need to look anything up.

In other news, my little pocket has been pretty well dancing with some very nasty storm systems. Destructive tornadoes have struck all around us, but have pretty well left us alone other than some wind and rain. There is still a tornado watch on the area, but I honestly don't think anything will come of it. In fact, I saw plenty of sunshine outside when I peeked out the window about an hour ago.

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

"We Are Not Amused!"

Good Afternoon, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Feeling Groovy. I chose the name because the colors were mildly reminiscent of the '60's and the 'Flower Power' culture.

And boy, do I need some cheering up! My present course, while it has information that aspiring entrepreneurs need to know, has NOT been as well handled as it needs to be. The instructor's syllabus lacked a large amount of essential data- and when I asked her about it, she brushed me off. When I told her that I found her syllabus confusing, she told me, "I don't find it confusing." Well- She wouldn't because she knows what she means. But I am not the only one who has had difficulty decoding the lady's intention; I've noted similar reports from a sizable fraction of the class. A lot of us have taken hits to our grades because of this lack of clarity and detail. To be fair, she did talk a lot about APA formatting, and that is something I've noticed people need help with in some of my past courses. In fact, APA formatting is one of my banes. Sometimes I think that the people who create these 'guidelines' are deliberately trying to change the rules, similar to how a little kid tries to change the rules of a game he is losing. As it was, I lost three days that I needed to study this week's material. I'm trying to remain upbeat because walking around with a long face doesn't accomplish anything. But I am not a happy camper.

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

Update

Good Morning, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Next Tree. One day, I was experimenting with a number of Tree-based images. This is one of the results.

I do have an update for you. My father is feeling better, though he's still not all the way up to snuff. The doctors STILL don't know what he has, or had. Considering some of the scary symptoms, though, improvement is good! It may be a while before he returns to work. I do hope that his workplace decides to behave ethically and keep its promise to him!

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

::Fret, Fret::

Good Afternoon, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Green Energy. It's not what I was originally looking for. However, right now I could stand a little soothing.

I just learned that my father had to be taken to the emergency room. I'm not surprised, given his health history and what the family learned about his heart- but he's not really pleased about it either. How fortunate that my husband and I haven't activated some of our future plans yet that involve moving!

Please send good energy his way, Gentle Readers.

Until We Meet...

Cookbooks and Warm Weather

Good Afternoon, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Blowing Flames. It isn't quite what I was trying for when I made it; I was thinking the flames would follow more of a circular pattern when I finished the image. That didn't exactly happen, but I found the results pleasing anyway so I kept it as you see.

It may not be officially spring yet, but it is so warm and sunny outside that I opened a window- Much to the delight of the Kitty Contingent. I even shed my socks. Considering how my toes don't like cold, you can imagine what that means.

You may remember some time ago how I talked of gathering family recipes to publish in a book titled Cooking for Real People. I think I have enough recipes gathered to make a respectable-sized book now, though a few more are still trickling in. I will want to check and make sure none of the recipes constitute copyright violations, but most of them are very much original. Wish us luck!

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

Caught up?

Good Afternoon, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Golden Glow, and it is one of my more recent attempts at creating halos. As you can see, it worked rather well- though it still didn't quite do as planned.

When I logged in to try to see what some of my friends were blogging about, I ran into an error message in the link to the list of blogs I follow. Talk about annoying! I guess I'll just have to poke around and find out the hard way- Unless the error was generated by maintenance work, as sometimes happens.

I did get most of the reading I had to do done last night. That, I am grateful for! I still have a fair bit to do today, but I have a fighting chance of catching up now. Once I do that, I'll start reading ahead and working on my individual papers. This business of having to wait until the last instant because of household emergencies is for the birds!

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...

Scary New Course

Good Afternoon, Gentle Readers!

Today's image is titled Tree And Heart. I made this the same time I made the previous heart image, and for the same reason. Of the two, I like this one better. I may try for yet another in the series later.

I got a look at my new course yesterday. I have only one word: Eep! I'm going to have to do a lot of reading and noting before I can even think of answering the questions, as well as listening to material that I can only access via the student web site. One good thing came out of this: I figured out how to finish setting up my student e-mail account. It may seem a simple thing at first, but I was not easy about some of the hoops I had to jump through before. The only reason I finished is because the instructor insisted, and she seems to be a stickler for detail.

I don't blame her altogether; From the tone of some of her postings, she has had students in the past who have no idea how to write, though they can text until the cows come home. Too, I have seen students in a few of my other classes whom I am surprised got in; The errors in some of the writings they presented I would have been ashamed of in fifth grade. I didn't say anything to them about it; It wasn't my place, and after all, they were trying to learn and were probably berating themselves for not learning before. I wish them luck.

Until We Meet, Gentle Readers...