Words Almost Fail Me

Rewind to yesterday. I can't tell you how rewarding an experience the assisted living photography session was. In fact, as the title makes clear, it will be hard for me to describe it.

It started by my hearing on NPR about a photographer visiting a nursing home and photographing the residents. Before some of you knew me, I was a queen with old folks. I had patients in their 90's, and we got along famously; they looked forward to their yearly mammogram. This seemed like an excellent idea for me to pursue. Serendipitously (is this a word?) a woman who comes to the market frequently turned out to be an activities person at a local assisted living center. We made plans, they got moved, we made plans, this time it was a go.

When I first arrived no one was waiting. It wasn't long before one woman came forward, then another, and you get the picture. I would introduce myself, shake their hand, ask their name, and age. Some were proud to tell me.

Rose, pictured yesterday, suffers from macular degeneration, a disease of the eye, rendering the person nearly blind with extreme sensitivity to light. She was game, however she pressed me to hurry as the light was hurting her eyes. One of my favorite pictures of her is with her head down, and hands to her eyes. She'll never see it, but I'll enjoy it myself. I told her she looked good, she said she was wearing her school girl clothes. I said indeed; I liked her cardigan and pleated skirt.

Today I've posted Isabella's picture. Another one that won't be seen, but I like her wistful look. As it turns out, this 93 year old woman is not well--surprise! The marvelous part is that her daughter (69) was visiting from North Carolina and was absolutely thrilled that I was there. She asked if I would photograph them together--need I tell you my answer? When I was leaving, my contact told me the daughter was so grateful; she was worried it would be the last picture taken of her and her mother. Naturally, yours truly teared up at the thought.

It was one of those things you do as much for yourself as for others. That may sound selfish--most of our actions are in some regard. The blessings I received were great. My intention is to provide them with an 8 X 10 for free--we don't need the money. I was hoping to make them feel special and that someone would do something for them with no strings attached. At their age, every person that helps them is paid. I will not be counting myself among that group. Hopefully it will be a blessing to them as well.

I called my contact this morning to let her know that we had some wonderful shots. She replied that there were those who were disappointed not to have had it done. Would I be returning? Again, you know how I responded.



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Busy Day!

This is Rose, aged 99, taken today at the assisted living facility. I'm super tired tonight because after that photo shoot (17 people) I drove Carol to Melbourne and drove home after visiting. We'll catch up tomorrow.

Feel Alright

Before I forget, the song playing is now used in a commercial for Orlando. Talk about taking words out of context. I love this song and was stunned when I heard it coming from Bruce's television in the garage. I quickly went to take a look and what to my wondering eyes should appear, but images of children frolicking at WDW. Who knew?
If you don't know the song a favorite bit of mine is: "We are young, we are free, keep our teeth nice and clean." People are so silly and clever.

When I re-upped with flickr I was to receive ten free Moo cards. It's been thirteen days since they shipped...hope they get here soon. My niece Amanda brought some last year to our Thanksgiving celebration, I loved them. I've got about ten of hers taped to my refrigerator door.

This morning I went to vote; the workers said there had been quite a few voters already at 9AM. It's great how this election has spurred people to vote who never do. After all, how can a person complain about leadership if they don't take the opportunity to vote? Next I went to Lowes to get some flowers. Still sporting my "I Voted" sticker, the cashier remarked she would be going after work. You know how workers sometimes have their country of origin on their name tags? Hers read Cuba. We discussed what a privilege it is to vote and how so many people take it for granted. She should know.

Well, excitement around here; above you see pictured a new idea. As some of you know I've been puzzling about selling the gallery wrapped canvases. Lisa was kind enough to send out some images to everyone she could think of to get opinions. As is usually the case, there was no consensus. Nevertheless, Bruce wanted to try this out. We bought a deep square frame from Ikea, (our new favorite, wow, when you go there you ask what recession, people are buying like crazy). Mr.Roger printed the image on canvas, Bruce made a stretcher frame, mounting it in the black frame. I've given you two looks to fully realize the look. I, for one, am thrilled with it. It combines the beauty of canvas, (no glass, no glare) with the finished look of a frame. We are still working on how to price it. As well, we'll gauge interest this Sunday when people see it. Canvas is fairly expensive; it boils down to really providing options.

This wall is in the kitchen and there is a glass door to the right of the piece. What normally hangs there is often used by me to tell when Bruce pulls into the driveway--I can see the reflection of his car.

Carol called last night while I was blogging and asked if I had time to go to a Catholic bookstore today. Have you heard about the St. Joseph phenom? Apparently, he is the patron saint of real estate. As you are already aware Carol needs to have something happen with their house in Melbourne, but as also doesn't need pointing out, the real estate market is in shambles. No problem I replied. There is one a few miles from here that I called first. I was told, why yes, we have a kit. "A kit?" I asked. Turns out prayer cards with instructions are included. There are two versions depending on a person's decor. It seems that after the successful real estate transaction the beneficiary is to place the statue prominently inside. When the clerk tried to give me a receipt I told her that unless there is a money back guarantee I had no need for it. Stranger things have happened.

Forgive me for mistakes, I'm getting a little tired. Bruce was up at 4:15 and when he opened the bathroom door I woke up. Lately I have so many ideas that I don't easily fall back to sleep. I feel a nap coming on.

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Gushing Water and Dangling Shoes

The market was finally super busy yesterday. I sold eight pieces which I was happy about. I take pictures of the market happenings every week for the manager. She then shares them with everyone at City Hall so they know what the market is all about. Lately they have been giving her what she wants; the latest, a large banner on the street.

Bruce did all the set up then took off with David to take his Mom to lunch for her birthday. During set up the weather was horrible--windy, gray, and cold. As predicted it turned glorious. They met her near where she lives, about twenty miles from us. Thus, Bruce was gone most of the time, meaning that between talking to folks at the booth and picture taking I was a busy girl. One woman who was particularly kind and interested in my work was the local chairwoman for the Sierra Club. She ordered one of the prints in a smaller size than what I had on hand.

Now to today's pictures. The other day when I had Baxter with me we saw this manhole cover off to the side; periodically water gushed up with great force. What mostly interested me was the rusty cover however the water issue was pretty cool.

Yesterday at the market my friends Heath and Micheal came by to visit. After a bit they left, then returned, with Heath showing me the shoes on the line just down the street. I asked if he was trying to torture me because I couldn't leave the booth. This morning I made it a point to go back downtown to see the shoes for myself. The lake with the manhole cover is one the way so.....

I sent Jonathan an e-mail today telling him that Mitt Romney called for him; I told him Jonathan had moved to Chicago.

Honestly, the calls are incessant. Yesterday upon returning from the market there were three messages, one each from John, Mitt, and McCain's wife Cindy who pronounced Viet Nam weirdly. Primary in the morning.

Carol is coming from 90210 tomorrow night. She will be spending most of her time in Melbourne with a rental they own. Carol always brings excitement with her not to mention twenty five years experience as a professional artist. She has the coolest studio in Venice Beach. Dennis Hopper has an extremely unusual house two blocks over.

An owner of an art and framing place on the campus of the hated University of Florida visited the booth saying he would love to have some of my pieces for his shop. Would I be interested in some consignment work? How do you think I responded?

Additionally, the project I mentioned some time ago, the assisted living gig is coming up Wednesday morning. I am so looking forward to making some of the elderly residents feel like they still matter.

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Caught in the Middle

The immigration debate continues. These darling boys are the sons of a Mexican father the same age as Bill and Dave. Roaming the park with Baxter in tow these innocent little faces struck me hard. Silly me... I started crying telling Bruce about my encounter. What is to be done?

Mission Accomplished

Here's what's happening:

Husband Extraordinaire fixed the roof yesterday morning; he cleaned the gutters while on the roof, two miserable jobs. Putting on dress clothes he assumed his normal work persona. He's indescribable!

Homemaker finally cleans kitchen floor--LONG overdue.
Incorrect flea medication returned--duh! they sold Bruce the same dose he was on, clearly not sufficient.

Matt called!! Yeah. He's going to Brussels next month, as well as a return trip to LA. Acting as a consultant, both he, and Carol were kind enough to give me feedback on this: ? Submissions?
As you know I've been applying to shows. The latest one, and I'm presuming the hardest to get into, wants TWO slides. I'm incapable of choosing two, thus my solicitations. I've posted it in case you want to add your two cents worth. So many decisions to make.

Consultation with David regarding the business. He's trying to convince me to go with what sells, treating it more like a business rather than a personal gallery. He and Mr. Roger concur on this point. Speaking of whom, I've given his name and card out to loads of artists. I sent an e-mail the other day asking if he's getting too busy for my needs. He assured me that is not the case, thank goodness.

The acceptance for one of the shows came in the mail today.

Sometimes I get bored with the same walk around our neighborhood with Baxter. Working on being a better caregiver I took him today to a nearby wetlands park. Coincidentally it is next to the cemetery where my parents are buried. You didn't need to know that did you? At any rate, today the weather is spectacular, around 60 degrees with gorgeous blue skies. We circled the park coming across a person sunbathing down by the water. If you look closely, follow the bike and you will see some knees poking out. It would be a little too cool for me to be out there with no shirt on!

Lastly, the phone has been ringing like crazy with political calls. I've mentioned before that we have this weird talking caller ID which is coming in mighty handy right now. The voice is so weird and mechanical, and why wouldn't it be you're thinking. I don't know how those folks in Iowa stood it. Four days and counting.


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Tripod in the Field

Once again I drove Bruce to Vero. The thing is I'm not a big fan of driving his BMW, thus I'd rather drive my car and drop him off enabling me to roam at will with no trepidation. My first stop was the Riverside Park. There are some lovely rocks waterfront that I may be showing in the near future. My last visit a ranger pointed out an osprey atop a very tall oak tree. Hmmm... I tried with little success. When you have the zoom out so far it is easy to get camera shake. Today I brought my tripod with me--I looked sorta dorky but really, who cares?

At any rate I was concentrating on the rocks when I heard a very distinctive bird call. I looked up, there was the osprey. For those unfamiliar with that species it is a fish eating hawk. I've just checked and apparently the plumage was used for women's hats. I'm not so good at judging heights but it was WAY up there. I set up the tripod with the camera on MAX zoom and here you go.

My market manager hates birds. I always hate to put bird pictures up for her sake; I'm sure there are those among you who feel the same way. Feel free to move on to another blog. This blog will tell you that the writer then photographed a pelican eating a fish and a tiny little bird on a fence post.

Our original plan was to stay the night in Vero with our dear neighbor Regina caring for Baxter. Those plans were aborted. The last few days Baxter has been scratching like nobodies business. Bruce arrived home from his flight around 1 AM this morning. He was extremely quiet, but I woke up and we chatted. I mentioned the problem. Any problem with Baxter makes Bruce unhappy. He immediately went in the sun room and examined him. He determined that he had sores on his legs. You've seen Baxie with all that fur--how he even found them, I'll never know. The upshot is that we got home around 5:30, a vet visit later, and it turns out he had a serious flea problem. He's also put on weight. What kind of owners are we you might be wondering. Well, me too. We all know the solution for the weight, more exercise, less food. I suspect the flea problem is because the dose of Advantage (topical flea stuff for the uninitiated) was for a lighter dog. We'll be rectifying these problems.

Anyone who has payed even the slightest bit of attention to the stock market of late knows that it has been volatile (an understatement if ever there was one). I worry about David during these times but he remains upbeat. Don't ask me how but he does. As well Bill works for a bank and he's doing well. I don't really understand it but I'm grateful.

During the Baxter investigation Bruce also found a roof leak--boohoo! Don't ask me how the two are related but they are.



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