Returning to Normal?

What is normal for us anyway? With so many recent changes in our lives, it is hard to say, but for now, not having a cough would be a good start. A horrible cough has lingered, although I am up and about in spite of some difficult nights sleeping. Isn't that the way, you are fine and dandy while upright, but oh, once you lay down, the coughing begins! The power of gravity, or so I assume, helps keep it at bay while standing or sitting. I'm trying not to listen to folks who've told me that the cough stays with you for weeks!

At least it did not keep Bruce up at night as he did not come home until Friday afternoon, having left on Sunday afternoon. Oh wait--he was up all night watching his workers complete their tasks. The good news there is that they are pretty much done with the Miami remodel, leaving only the job in Calgary to be completed. Preparing meals for one can be difficult as I'm sure many of you well know. One night, struggling to put a meal together, I had to resort to roasting some carrots for dinner as there was not a thing resembling a vegetable to be found in our home. I do not recommend trying the same, unless desperate of course, as these were awful.

That said, I still can't fully taste food. I was thinking, having experienced the no-taste thing for much of the week, how awful it would be to lose one's sense of taste. Aren't senses one of those things we take for granted until they are taken away? Then again it is easy to take our good health for granted too, isn't it?

Meanwhile, while I am all whiny about not feeling my best, our Florida neighbors in the Panhandle will not be returning to normal anytime soon following the destructive path of Hurricane Michael. Oh my gosh, what devastation. Periodically throughout the day that it came ashore, I would turn on the weather channel for updates. While I'm not sure what I was expecting, it seemed to me as if the coverage almost bordered on tabloidish, if I may be so bold as to use what is perhaps a made up word. Apparently there is a market for that kind of reporting, but I'm not it. There really are no words to describe how awful it must be in so many ways. The relentless heat we are still experiencing must be excruciating with no air conditioning. Then too, where do you begin the cleanup? An interesting story, from the NYT, of one one house that remained standing amongst the ruins.

One morning I drove over to Lake Eola Park for a walk around the lake, something that I'd yet to do since we've been home. After parking the car on Washington Street, I began my walk near the playgrounds, and more importantly the bathroom that I used to frequent every Sunday. These signs must have been around then, but I can't recall seeing them before. Not surprising with my memory! I thought they might interest some readers.

Maybe the print is too small for reading? Narrative continued here:

One bird that is oh so plentiful at Lake Eola are Mute Swans.

At one time we had some Tuxedo Swans, which I thought I was seeing from afar. Upon closer inspection, I'm not quite sure what this one would be called. Did it mate with a Muscovy Duck? Weird, isn't it?

The park was filled with pink flamingoes as this is Pink October. While I have great sympathy for those affected by breast cancer, isn't it time this campaign went away quietly? Is there anyone who is not aware that breast cancer exists? After all, there are far more deadly cancers that receive little, or no attention. I'm thinking pancreatic, or ovarian cancer, to name just two.

I continued my walk until I came to the spot that we called home for more Sundays than I can count. How we did the market, week after week, is beyond me.

Yesterday afternoon, following church, we strolled for a little bit through the Autumn Winter Park Art Festival, of course recalling the time when we were set up during a deluge, one time we had a terrific show, and one time I'd completely forgotten about.  At this show we saw some very fun,

and imaginative art.

That said, it was so blazing hot, not to mention we are not currently in the market for art, we cut our visit short, heading instead over to Luma for lunch and air conditioning. This starter, of roasted brussel sprouts on a sauce colored with beet juice was tasty, albeit stupid expensive ($15). Plus, that pink is a little weird looking, right? Pepto Bismol anyone?

 Driving home down Fern Creek we came across what is a new park to me,

apparently begun following the Pulse tragedy? Or so it would appear.

On the home front the Golden Rain tree along the lakefront has gone from shocking yellow, to bright coral.

As you see from the above, the Lake Pineloch shoreline has a white sandy beach, whereas our little lake is not nearly as tidy. But, we do have a plethora of wildlife, for which I'm most grateful. The other morning a Limpkin and Ibis were foraging,

while this big fat turtle was resting, presumably having swum across the lake, or so I imagine as I see them most mornings. Well, I just see the tip of their nose, but you get my drift.

Most evenings people gather at the big pool and on this Friday night, there was a good crowd, mostly women, which Bruce doesn't mind in the least. He's talking with Patsy Barr, the mother of one of my childhood friends. In fact, it was her daughter that took me to her church youth group where I got to know Bruce.     

 Have you noticed how the days are getting shorter?

Lots of things happening in our part of Orlando---new buildings going up, and old ones slated for change, including the Fort Gatlin shopping center at the corner of Orange and Gatlin. Seeing this happening Saturday afternoon was shocking in many ways, one of which I was startled to learn that there had once been a library branch there. Who knew?

And in other news, I saw a Black-Capped Chickadee on our feeder this morning. Returning to normal, maybe so, at least when it comes to feeding birds. :)

your friend,

Gail

Had We Known....

that we would be doing a major art festival over the weekend, it is a safe bet that we would not have gone on our little trip to St. Pete!

When last we met, I promised my next post would include the second day photos and narrative about said trip, however, things got just a little crazy around here on Friday.

Two unexpected things happened:

• I discovered my website has disappeared. Yup, don't know where it has gone. While trying to send the link to Jenni, a woman who met me at the market, and is a buyer for her church bookstore where she thinks some of my photography would be a good fit, it was nada. We are to meet today at 1:00 to work out the details.
• After blogging and doing some last minute shopping for Bruce while he was working at Church Street, I had a little lunch. So far, so good. I believe it was 2:00 on Friday when the phone rang. It was the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce asking if I would like to take the spot of a last minute cancelation for the festival. Oh my goodness!

If you are a long time reader of Camera Crazy you might understand how I reacted to this call. Here are two posts to be read in order if you're interested.

My post October 2010

My post October 2011

So, now you know that one year I did the festival and it was absolutely wonderful, and the next year it was absolutely terrible. Oops, giving it away! Anyway, for three years hence I've applied to the show without being accepted. Except, this year, I got the notice, I think it was maybe June, that I was on the wait list. Previously I've been on a few wait lists, but the calls never came, so after getting over the initial disappointment, I'd given the festival no thought. 

Because Bruce was leaving early Monday morning I would not accept without his approval, and we all know why--it is B that does the heavy lifting.

Of all things, last Monday I took the time to go through all of the images that Roger has, and made a gigantic order after surviving the summer with skimpy inventory. By gigantic I mean 113 prints in various sizes. And you know what? Every single one of them were still stacked up on my office table, (after picking them up on Thursday afternoon,) waiting to be prepared for selling. After getting Bruce's approval on the phone, and trying not to panic, I called Cheryle for help. SHE CAME THROUGH! While she was placing the stickers on the back, I was signing as quickly as possible. Outside Mr. Peck was loading the car. By 4:00 he said it was time to get it on. And on we got it. Parking on Park Avenue, we carried everything to space #24. The weather was comfortable and breezy.

The tent goes up first, followed by the sides, followed by the poles, followed by the "walls." Weights at all four corners, and the hanging begins. Tables are placed, prints put in baskets, and pretty much, we breathe a sigh of relief. We are ready after three hours. Are you tired just reading this? We were tired doing it for sure. But there were still remaining prints to be signed and dinner to be eaten. And sleep--you know how much I love my sleep!

Early, as in 7:15 early, I left the house anticipating a fantastic day of meeting with folks and selling art. What I was not thinking so much about was the weather because there was ZERO chance of rain. WooHoo! That lovely breeze pictured above stayed away all day, and by 5:00, I thought I would die in the 90+ degree heat. Throughout the summer I survive with my mega-fan, so I was ill prepared. HOWEVER, aside from the heat, I talked to lots of folks, including old friends which is always such a pleasure. 

As is typical, the judges did not even speak to me, but I knew that would be the case going in, so I was not surprised. Good thing because although it would be nice to win prize money, I was ready to go home to Bruce. And yes, air conditioning. The funny thing about art shows is there are artists who are there wanting to sell their art, and then there are artists there hoping to win prize money. You know which camp I am in!

Because I use my phone for credit card sales, and because I was running out of charge on Saturday, Bruce bought me a little charger gadget which I used for Sunday.

It worked beautifully. What also worked beautifully was a woman who told me that I was probably running too many apps which were draining my battery. Handing over my phone, she laughed as she closed window after window. "I bet you've never closed anything before, have you?" She got an affirmative answer to that question! Later on in the afternoon, when Bruce arrived, I tried showing him how to do it, but that did not happen as I'd promptly forgotten the steps! Some young men were outside the tent and I asked them to show us how, but a woman inside the tent said she knew how to do it. Before long there was a little crowd--I called it an iPhone seminar, however, I still don't know how to do it, but they all do!

All in all, I did about half what I did in 2010, selling 96 items, mostly coming with a small price tag. Not what I was expecting, but good grief--what is there to complain about? Several of my neighbors did not sell anything, which is very sad. Imagine going to all the work of creating, setting up, sweating profusely for two days, spending the $300 for entry fee, and coming away with nothing! The next art festival you attend, do your best to participate no matter how small your purchase. The artists will so much appreciate your patronage.

In spite of the unexpected turn of events, Bruce took the early flight to Vancouver this morning, all suited up for the change in weather. We are going to miss each other greatly this week, however, we are so happy for the new adventure, that I'm imagining the week will fly by. :)

A new day is dawning in the Peck household......

feeling blessed,

Gail

It Could Have Been Worse

 I may think of what could have been worse as I type this post...

Friday morning I had everything ready to go. Bruce managed to find a flight home, which is a long story in itself;  you probably would cringe to hear it. I was expecting him home around 10 in the morning. The weather was pleasant--not too hot, not too chilly. The sun streamed through the kitchen window and front door which I had open for the breeze:

All the essentials on the counter--my kettle, tea cup, and wine for later. I was feeling very good. Just as I grabbed Baxter's leash from the shelf, I heard what sounded like rain. Say what?

Indeed, it was rain, which turned out to be short lived. Heading out the side door, I was thrilled to see a RAINBOW! I see very few rainbows, so you can imagine how happy I was. Plus, you already know that I have a camera with me to capture anything interesting on our walk. Oh was I happy, taking it as a sign that the weekend, despite the dire weather predictions, would turn out just fine.

This, my friends, was no ordinary rainbow. No siree. It was a full arc with brilliant colors. Plus, it stayed around awhile. This photograph is taken as I walked down the street toward the lake, tugging Baxter all the while. My intent was to get to the lake in time to take a photograph over the water, however, our little doggie had other intentions! No matter, I was happy to get what I did, not to mention  that in person, it filled me with joy.

Around 3 in the afternoon Bruce and I loaded the vehicles and off we went. Rain had come and gone throughout the day, but thankfully it stayed away as we put everything up. Actually it was a very easy set up for once--great grass, perfect location with our vehicles just steps away, and cooler temperatures. Plus we set it all up in the daylight unlike last year when we did much of it by street lamps. We were done by 7, heading home to eat. So far so good. Bruce, after getting about four hours of sleep the night of the missed flight, fell asleep on the couch just after 8. Obviously, he'd had enough.

It must have been about 3 in the morning that the rain woke us. Although we have sides to our tent, constant rain is not welcome, not one bit. Bruce was agitated, worrying about our set up but finally managed to get back to sleep. Did I tell you the rain was loud and strong? I should have.

The alarm went off just after 6; Bruce was in his clothes in no time, heading off to see what had occurred overnight. Years ago, when I embarked on this craziness, I read somewhere how important dressing for success was for a vendor. As such,  I did what I could, thankfully wearing a long sleeved blouse and capris, along with a touch of makeup. I say thankfully because around 2 in the afternoon when I was chilly due to being both wet and miserable, I was happy I'd chosen to wear what I did. While I was sprucing up, Bruce called saying things looked pretty good--no real damage. He was hunting a hardware store to buy some supplies to make a bit of an awning. When I arrived things looked like this:

The big white lump below is the chair with our print baskets as well as the canvases that were to be hung on the outside wall facing Park Avenue.

You see the front panel closed in the second photograph--that's the front of the tent which at this point was holding off the rain from pouring in. When we left the prior evening we had high hopes of hanging canvases on the outside of the above pictured wall. Well, that was not going to work! My corner booth extra cost for naught. 

I can't stress enough how lucky I am to be married to Bruce, who among his many talents, has experience camping. It certainly comes in handy during times like these. Here he is a little later after fashioning an opening so if there were any customers whatsoever, they could peer in if they were so inclined.

I'm sure you know what he's got in that left hand of his--hot tea!! Plus, he bought some darling little pastries from the nearby French patisserie. Although he wasn't anxious to leave me alone I told him I'd be fine. Which I was for a bit, but then I got, not only cold, but my darn phone was almost dead. Before he left I was almost in tears, but I got a hold of myself. Good thing I had an excellent short story collection to keep me company. If you can imagine there were some hardy souls who braved the weather, which by the way was a record. Wouldn't you know it--a record held for 60 years had to break on the biggest day of the year for me. Not to mention the other 149 artists, many of whom have to live on the income they make at shows. Plus, some of them traveled hundreds of miles. Seriously it kept raining and raining and raining. All the while the canvases were getting wetter and wetter. Good thing they can take it. I, on the other hand couldn't, calling Bruce with the little bit of charge I had left. The darling man came to my rescue bringing the charger and a jacket. Plus I was hungry and wet and just plain miserable all around. 5:00 could not come soon enough. We skipped the fancy dinner, instead coming home as soon as possible. Pajamas and socks were my garments of choice once we arrived home. Somehow, despite the conditions we eked out $90 in sales. Pretty sad. As I mentioned earlier, this show is equal to about two to three months of going to the market. Now you understand.

After an early bedtime on Saturday night, Bruce awoke early. He currently has 10 jobs, in several states, under construction, so you can imagine how much work that entails. His inbox usually has 300 or so emails he needs to answer. While tackling that task, he had the weather on the television which stated that the rain was continuing through Sunday. Prediction--100% chance of rain all day long. When little Miss Sleeping Beauty finally awoke, he gave her the news. Around 7 we headed over to take the whole set up down, along with many of the other artists. The rain won. Once we returned we put fans going on all the canvases which are lined up in the sun room and the guest bedroom. The prints got wiped down. The sadness on my part increased.  

Throughout the remainder of the day there were periods of sun (very brief) and showers. You would have thought we lived in England! There were times when I thought we should have stuck it out and others when I thought it was the right decision. Matt called in the afternoon, reminding me that I have all those canvases for a reason. Good point son. 

Where there's a will there's a way, however this time our will was broken, unlike this wily squirrel who is undeterred by anything I've done to date to keep him away from the birdseed!

What could have been worse? My prints could have gotten wet, there could have been lightening, one of us could have been in an accident going to and fro on the wet streets. Lots could have been worse. So, although I was a bit teary eyed in the afternoon, I'm getting over it, starting with writing this blog post which I couldn't do earlier in the day. Time to look ahead! Saturday is another show.

I wrote this last evening before an early bedtime--you know mental exhaustion and all. For some reason I couldn't get it to publish so this morning I've copied and pasted the whole thing into Firefox. After a good night's sleep I'm getting perspective which I'm sure you're most happy to hear. 

your out and about photographer,

Gail

The Parks

To outsiders, when they think of Orlando they think Disney World, or at least most of them do. Insiders know that Disney is 25 miles from downtown Orlando. Don't get me wrong, Disney has had a huge impact on our area but for someone like me it's a place I rarely go. Come to think of it, more than ten years have passed since last I ventured out that way. Maybe even longer.

Instead my days are spent in the various neighborhoods that make up greater Orlando. My errands today were all spent North of the city center, beginning the day visiting Monica in College Park for a bang trim. I know, I told you I was having my hair cut yesterday, however, not long after posting yesterday's installment of Camera Crazy, she called and cancelled. When I told her I was going to cut my own bangs she asked if I could make it today. No, not really, or at least not for a long appointment. I have bridge you know.

From there I traveled to Maitland for a fun time spent with my bridge buddies although I never even played a hand. For those of you who know bridge you will understand, for those who don't it just means I won none of the bids because my point totals were too low. Did I lose you? Probably not, as I know most of my readers are the clever sort.

Next stop--Winter Park to not only buy dog food at Whole Foods, but I wanted to take a look at my space. I bet you're anxious to see it too.

See that little thing sticking out of the grass? I'm to the right of it, or at least it looks that way from the map they sent. There is a booth that faces the cars, then me on the corner. How great is this? Not to mention that we are just across the street from Eola Wine Company. I may have to send Bill over for a takeout. Speaking of which, Bill is my Saturday helper, Jane is helping on Sunday morning until lunch and Kristen is taking the Sunday afternoon shift. Bruce will continue his role as project manager and roadie, setting up the tent and display (with a level no less) tomorrow evening. There is one thing I have no control over--the weather. I can't tell you how much I hope they are wrong. Last year this event was the best that I've done in all four years of selling photography so you know how much I have my heart set on it, however, there are worse things going on in the world which should help me keep it in perspective. That sounds good anyway. Not to mention the $355 I've spent for my space already. While eating dinner last night I saw this in the local paper:

The image in the ad is the poster image, which unlike Mt. Dora, was chosen from solicited entries. I always say I can't win anything if I don't enter so I did. Very interesting that I entered this:

I told you photography was a hard sell with judges. Nice that they bought a full page ad as well as television advertising.

You would think all the neighborhoods have Park in their name and you'd be partly right as I can think of plenty. After the dog food purchase I made my way to yet another Park--Thornton Park where Mr. Roger lives. Beth, she of the summer wedding reception at our home fame, has a part time job now helping Mr. Roger out with the business. I had them re-make two canvases I sold over the weekend which she was just finishing when I arrived. We chatted a bit about this weekend's upcoming Pride parade which will be on Sunday afternoon running adjacent to the market. I told her that in my experience the crowds are huge, the buyers non-existent. That goes for all the vendors, so I won't be missing a thing except for the fun spectacle of it all.

You can tell the video is fairly new because the fountain has the new colors. Which brings us back to where we started. What with Disney and Universal there is a lot of gay talent in our area. I wonder if that 100,000 number will be accurate.

Once I finally got back to my little piece of Orlando, Bruce called while driving to Dulles Airport from his job in Virgina. Damn GPS sent him the wrong direction! Google Maps came to our rescue however not soon enough. Because he drove twice as far as necessary he's missed his 6PM flight. All the remaining flights to Orlando are sold out. My poor baby. Now what?

Glass doors are good because they help me stay connected to the outside world. You would think we lived in the country what with all the little critters that come around. While eating lunch the other day I saw this guy outside the side door. He never moved an inch while I was taking this:

Tomorrow morning I'll be like this frog/toad, I never know the difference. These people seem to have it all figured out. Patiently waiting for the show to begin.

The kitchen awaits wondering what I'm going to rustle up for dinner....me too.

Collaboration

By now you may be wondering how the show went. Well--excellent, thank you very much. Furthermore our expectations were exceeded by ten fold. After barely surviving the summer intact, we came back with a ROAR!

And by we, I mean everyone involved, because, believe you me, I couldn't begin to do it by myself. It's all very much a team effort beginning with Bruce, without whom the display would not happen. Here's how things went on Friday afternoon. A late email kept Bruce at work longer than he would have liked, thus the set up began later than we both would have liked. Arriving home around 5, he stripped off his classy business clothes and went to work loading the Element to the rafters!

Driving over to Winter Park is pretty much a breeze, however we could not park our vehicles all that close. The beginning of the load out:

Many people were completely set up and secured by the time we arrived which probably made things a tad easier. Here's our space after unloading.

Sadly, it never did cool off one bit. I was getting a tad testy for a moment because I was so darn hot. I am completely over this heat, and even more so after the weekend, but more about that shortly. By the time the tent was all zipped up, we were both hot, hungry and tired. Looking at my watch I couldn't believe it was almost 9:00! After stopping for a quick bite to eat, we headed home, collapsing in bed almost as soon as we got in the door.  The above shot does show you how lovely the grass, and the whole park is, for that matter. Seriously, the nicest setting yet.

Leaving the house a little after 7:00 Saturday morning, I drove there not knowing what to expect from the day, although by now my nerves were completely under control. Raising the sides, setting up the table and displaying the price tags, I was ready for business before the 9:00 starting time. Soon thereafter Lisa arrived to be my bookkeeper. There's another part of the equation because without her I would have been sunk! She is an organizational queen and my ledger shows it! People started arriving soon with my first sale coming around 9:30. A small print, only $9.00, but they kept adding up as the day progressed. Here's how things looked:

All day long this the crowds looked like this:

And did I mention it was roasting? Well, it was! Awful heat, especially in our tent. By days end, 76 items left our booth.

Although I had a piece pulled for judging, I did not win any prize, which really doesn't surprise me. It was only today at the museum that I realized I did get an honorable mention ribbon. Bruce arrived Saturday evening after working much of the day with the sprinkler guys in the back yard to escort me to the party held at the Winter Park Historical Building:

The fellow in front of Bruce is a sculptor who won one of the prizes. They were a real nice couple from Miami; we had some fun chatting about the game scheduled for 8:00 between the Hurricanes and the Seminoles. By the time we arrived home I was what they call in the South--dog-tired.

Wondering how I would manage to stay up until the game was over, I settled in one of the thrones while Bruce fell asleep on the couch. Hurray for our team! Playing so well as to make me think it would be a miracle for the Hurricanes to come back, I felt confident enough to hit the sack. They didn't disappoint. I can still remember how big the rivalry was when Matthew went to FSU 17 years ago. The students would camp out for the weekend hoping to get tickets to the game.

Sunday morning was more of the same except for stopping by Roger's home on my way to the show. Another very large piece of the puzzle! Without Roger I would have nothing to display. Stepping onto his porch I expected to find five paper prints to replenish my supply of "Street Art"; I found two new canvases to replace the ones I sold on Saturday. Speaking with him on Saturday evening after the party I told him I was too tired to make a decision. He made it for me, and am I glad he did. Once at my booth I re-arranged the walls a bit making room for the replacements. Lisa arrived shortly after 9:00 to resume her duties. In this photograph she is sitting at the ready for any buyers:

Lo and behold, they came and came and came. Smarties, business cards, and prints were flying out of there. Adding a little whimsy to the day, this young man arrived:

How funny is this? My first attempt at a trip-tych, which sadly, did not sell. It may be just too dramatic. I say sadly because it is very hard to hang, but as you can see Mr. Bruce was up to the task.

Bruce arrived, Lisa left, and the packing up began in earnest. The heat never abated, sapping what little strength remained in this old body. Although I helped with the tear down, by the time I arrived home I was spent. You've already deduced that darling Bruce did all the unloading haven't you? Tijuana Flats for dinner and bed soon thereafter.  Oh yeah, I neglected to mention that Sunday's sales totaled 61. All in all, we sold 16 canvases, which is astonishing.

I want to thank my faithful readers for their encouragment--I know you are out there somewhere. As well, I am extending my gratitude to: Carlos, Amanda, Matthew, Katie, Amy, Maria, Jomarys, Albert, Cynthia, Susan, Thomas, Michele, William, Karen, Cody, Douglas, Jacki, Lindsay, Jeffrey, James, Kristina, Brooke, Melvin, Tesenia, Dana, Mario, Katayoun, Heidi, Ryan, Jay, Frederik, Damon, Jodie, Chris, Evelyn, Karen, Megan, Alissa, Charles, and Leslie. Those are just my credit card buyers! Plus my dear brother Pat and his wonderful wife Ruth came to not only visit, but Ruth always insists on buying gifts. She's too good to me.

So, if you've ever wondered what it's like to do a major art festival, now you know the nitty gritty, much of it not nearly as romantic as it looks from the sidewalk. :)

Tomorrow I'll tell you a little detective story with a happy ending.