happy happy
Alive and well here, Happy Holidays!
Alive and well here, Happy Holidays!
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
4
bottles washed up on the shore
So... it's like that, eh?
I got a brand new camera. Yep, I finally did it. I'm so excited! And to reward me, today was the worst weather of the entire year. It was gloomy and dark, and rained buckets today. I got soaked just taking the mutts out to do their business. Ha!
I had some idea of doing some natural light tea stills, but it was so dark! Check it:

That is with extra light shining directly on it. The image is actually brighter than the room ambient light PLUS the lamp at 1pm. For pete's sake.
Meh. I have toys. I'll get to play with them eventually. :)
Aaaanyways, I got the new Canon 7D. I love, love, LOVE it! zomg! Sadly, my Lightroom is not up to speed on the new RAW format, so the image quality output is not using the full potential of this camera. Hopefully, they'll get on that and release an update soon. SOON, ADOBE, DO YOU HEAR ME??!!!
Okay, so I'm leaving for Seattle in 3 more days, Tuesday at the buttcrack of dawn. Since I haven't done laundry in about 3 weeks, and I've "recycled" my favorite jeans until they could stand up by themselves, I'm wading through the mountain of laundry that represents my life at the moment. I'm also trying to pare down the clutter piles that have accumulated everywhere.
Books, as usual, are the biggest problem , as in I have too many, and they are in stacks on the floor. I seem to be quite incapable of paring down my book collection. I need another monster bookcase, but have nowhere to put it unless I appropriate a wall in my hubby's den. Oh yeah, he'll LOVE that.
But hey! New camera!
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
4
bottles washed up on the shore
Filing cabinet: books
We're having fun around here with apples. Sunny and Murphy go crazy for apples.
In other news, there's another blog, in case you're interested in my Gluten-Free stuff. I really don't want to post that stuff here, since I don't know where it will lead me - recipes or links or just ranting. If you want to read it, there's a link feed in the sidebar. Be warned that the first post is LONG, mainly because it's the set-up of the whole health saga of the last two years.
Over the past few years, several bloggers I follow have made dietary changes, including going gluten-free. I have to confess that I mostly just skipped over all of those posts whenever they would appear. Now, I kind of wish they had a dedicated blog or archive where I could find all of that stuff... That being said, I'm totally aware that most people aren't that interested in the individual dietary restrictions of the average person.
Besides, I don't know how long my interest in writing about GF will last, so I'd rather it have its very own home.
Also in the sidebar, is a feed for a new photoblog I started. Some will be a reposting of images I've shown here, but mostly it's a place where I can post what I consider my prettiest, favorite-est, fancypants pictures. I might even include a little commentary. The best part is I'm sticking a toe into the waters of making some of my stuff available as prints or cards. I'm trying out Fotomoto, and am hoping the quality is good. I've ordered test prints for myself to check the caliber of their prints for myself. We'll see.
While I still don't think my stuff is good enough yet to be more than just nice snaps, I'm willing to take the risk - especially when it's essentially no-risk like this is.
By the way, don't you love the still image Flickr chose for the video? It's cracking me up!
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
5
bottles washed up on the shore
Yes, yes, it's probably the last sunny day of the entire year and I'm sitting at my computer. Lunacy acknowledged. But how funny is this? I ran up to the zoo for a look at Samudra. He is getting so big!!! He was having a snack so I really only got a good look at his butt, but look at how he's standing! Ha!
Photography enthusiasm meter is climbing. The comments to my last post were so appreciated, and a boost that I really needed. On Wednesday afternoon (when I hit the zoo,) I also took a little side trip to the Washington Park Rose Garden. I intended to go to the Japanese Garden, but it was closed already. Who knew?
It was nice to get out and walk around, even if I huff and puff like a dilapidated steam engine.
Speaking of, I was tested for Celiac's Disease this week. The N.D. thinks there's a high probability that is my underlying disorder, why I'm so easily fatigued and out of breath, the anemia, a possible stressor that caused me to develop Hashimoto's, the tummyaches... We shall see.
I was inclined to just go gluten-free as soon as it was suggested, but I really wanted to get the tTG and IgA tests first, so held out - I kept eating gluten. It turns out that it was probably a good lead-up to gluten-free, because for that last weeks it was very clear that there's a strong food component in how poorly I've been feeling. Let me tell you, there's nothing so convincing as drinking a beer or eating a bowl of pasta, then being nauseated shortly afterward, add gluten, repeat - for a whole week!
Anyways, this is now day 5 of trying this. (Still no test results.) I haven't had a stomach ache since Monday (last day of gluten,) and some other, erm... "unpleasant" symptoms have nearly gone away.
My biggest hope is that I'll regain my energy, endurance and those nice little oxygen-carrying RBCs, so I can go on a hike and not feel like my heart is going to explode out of my chest at the slightest exertion. Nevermind running for the bus, I want to ride my bicycle!
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
2
bottles washed up on the shore
I've read different bloggers say that when all your posts become an apology for blogging so infrequently, it's time to hang it up. I've never understood that though, (either the apology, or the assumption that there must be frequent posting,) because isn't this an exercise we do for ourselves? Yeah sure, acknowledgement is a nice side benefit.
Anyways.
I'm not going to make excuses for being missing. I'm not really, I'm just not HERE very often. I also haven't been doing much photography. I kind of got knocked on my ass by some unkind remarks, by someone I don't even care about, in circumstances where the shit-talker doesn't even know that I'm aware of what was said.
It was a lot of crap about my photography being boring, and derivative, and all exactly the same, seen one seen em all, blah blah blah. And while there is the logical part of me that says he is just jealous (I've seen his photos, they are not "all that," even with better gear,) another part of me has hurt little feelers that haven't yet recovered.
As such, I've been doubting my vision, questioning every shot I take - "is this the same as something else? should I be using different lighting? different processing? have I exhausted the subject?..." With all of the self-doubt, it has become easier just to set down the camera.
People don't realize how fragile creativity can be, especially for someone like me, who has had that aspect of personality stomped out of them for most of their life due to cult-mentality.
I think I'm getting over the wounded ego though, I've been more interested in shooting.
I picked this off Neil Gaiman's journal a few days ago, and it really resonated, in view of the fact that I let this "bad review" affect me so greatly:
"My advice to you would be to do with creepy emails what Kingsley Amis used to say he did with bad reviews: he let them spoil his breakfast, but didn't let them spoil his lunch. Let the effects of the creepy people be fleeting too. And keep writing, and keep doing well, because it really seems to irritate them."
Perhaps my continuing to shoot will irritate the jerk who said those things. And hey, I can look at it this way - perhaps the criticism, deserved or not, will push me to improve more.
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
12
bottles washed up on the shore
Filing cabinet: brain dump, naked truth, photography
We stole away to the beach on Monday. Jon took the day off, and we left town and took the mutts with us. I can't believe the whole summer has gone by, with no beach time. What is WRONG with us?
The weather was unbelievable, high 80s, breezy, clear skies. It was like every childhood memory of the beach all rolled into one everlasting summer. Gorgeous.
We went down to Pacific City, probably our favorite place along the north Oregon coast. Plus, Pelican Pub for the win. YUM. The only bad part is we can't have the doggies on the patio, so we can't actually go to the pub until we can nab one of only 4 shady parking spots in the late afternoon. It was worth the wait.
My dogs crack me up. Their life-approach seems to mirror ours. Sunny jumps out and makes a beeline for the surf, splashes around a bit, then lays down in the wet sand and stretches...
Murphy, noting that water is still wet, prefers to stay on the dry sand, although he'll walk on the damp sand as long as there's no actual water involved. When he sees that water coming, he RUNS away.
Jon walked with Murphy on the dry sand and was happy. I splashed with Sunny in the surf and was happy.
It was a good day.

SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
4
bottles washed up on the shore
For RIP IV, my second book, I read Christopher Golden's The Ferryman. Let's get the "how was it" out of the way immediately: Meh.
I wanted to like this book, stories where mythology crosses into the mundane are some of my favorite flights of fantasy. But this book started out with some glaring idiocies. (Spoilers ahead.)
****************************
*
* S P O I L E R
*
****************************
The basic plotline is that the main character has died, but while between worlds, has cheated the Ferryman out of his fare by reviving, due to sheer force of her will. She does so in such a way that makes him very interested in her, so he comes to the mundane world to find her. Before he does this, however, he takes her baby.
This part of the story is what made this book a "don't recommend" for me. The main character loses her baby at term, yet within just a few days she is observing that she can go hours without thinking of him. WHAT??!!! Okay, I know enough people who have lost children to know this is patently ridiculous. Rather than making me sympathetic to the character, it makes me want to say "oh yeah, right." Rather more jarring than the supernatural aspects.
To continue on in that vein, she rekindles a romance with her previous flame, and within less than 2 weeks after the child is lost, she is having torrid sex of all kinds with her resumed lover. Okay, that's nice and all, but !!! um, Mr. Golden, did you never hear of postpartum lochia? I mean, really, the average guy is not going to want to put his mouth down there 10 days after you give birth. Blech. Not to mention SHE JUST LOST A CHILD!!! is on medication and is not sleeping due to constant nightmares! "oh yeah, right."
Add to that, (given that the whole book takes place within the time span of just a few weeks,) the main character is just too quick to be happy and well-adjusted, in love, and putting her "grief" in the background, within just a few weeks. I just don't buy it, and whatever else the story had to recommend it, this aspect just kept rising up to prevent me from suspending disbelief and just enjoying the idea of the Ferryman becoming obsessed with a denied passenger.
********************************************
*
* E N D S P O I L E R
*
********************************************
So I'm calling book 2 of the challenge a big ol' "No."
Being Sunday, and a stay at home day, I decided to wash the bad taste away with a short story or two. Electric Velocipede is my go-to short story collection, and I just happen to have double issue 17/18 that I've been saving.
The first story was a fairy tale called Sun's East, Moon's West by Merrie Haskell. It's about a young female "dragon slayer" and her Bear-God. Well worth reading, and I won't spoil any of it.
Happy reading!
P.S. to Carl V.: I just received the most delightful package in the mail, containing two spooky books (one autographed by the author!) and a creepy Gorey lunchbox. I haven't had a lunchbox in 25 years at least, and I love it! Thanks so much!
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
0
bottles washed up on the shore
Filing cabinet: books, poppets, RIP challenge, RIP IV Challenge
I had every intention of continuing my cleaning/organizing project I started on Thursday. (Note the tiny robot, and broken porcelain moose on the tea table.)
First though, I had to have some tea.
Then, because I was having tea, I decided I wanted some breakfast.
After I got the breakfast prepared, it seemed like a good idea to take a picture.
Taking the picture reminded me that I am behind on my RIP IV reading challenge, so I went to get my book.
When I found the book, I also discovered 2 CDs I bought at the 2nd hand shop that weren't on my computer.
So I went to the computer, which is next to the tea shelves I'm organizing, so I sat down to dust some teaware.
Which made me think I might need to have some tea...
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
6
bottles washed up on the shore
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
1 bottles washed up on the shore
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
4
bottles washed up on the shore
Filing cabinet: books, poppets, RIP IV Challenge

SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
1 bottles washed up on the shore
Filing cabinet: books, poppets, RIP IV Challenge
One of my projects over the last few weeks was to dig up and transplant (or give away) a bunch of shrubs and perennials, so I could change the shape of my front lawn. Our front lawn is tiny, but the yard is pretty big, and hubby wants to balance that out a little.

So I'm feeling pretty satisfied with myself, plants dug up, ground tilled, topsoil spread, seed ready... until I look up and see this little fiend headed for my fluffy dirt with a walnut in his mouth.
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
4
bottles washed up on the shore
Quick catch up of the last month:
Heatwave
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
0
bottles washed up on the shore
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
9
bottles washed up on the shore

I decided to go to my reunion.
There are only two or three people I went to school with that I've seen in the 20 years since graduation, despite still living in the same general area. From time to time I've heard of classmates and their accomplishments. Some of this makes me a little bit jealous for all the wasted opportunity in my life. I feel the loss of not being allowed to attend college most acutely when I think about old classmates.
There's a part of me that says "you fool, why didn't you just go then?" but the honest part of me says that, at that time in my life, under heavy indoctrination, I had no choice.
I'm cycling quickly between emotions. I'm fearful that nobody will remember me, or worse, that they will all remember me and shun me. I realize that I'm projecting my experience with exiting the JWs - since to everybody I knew as a child I am a pariah, an apostate, one of the condemned. I'm fearful I'll get there and sit in a chair and not speak with anyone because I'm inconsequential.
I'm hopeful that we all have grown up and discarded childhood whims and prejudices. I'm wishful that people will remember me with some nostalgic fondness, but to be truthful I'd be thrilled with simple curiosity.
I'm arrogant. Look how well I've done! I've dragged myself out of a cult that was the defining feature of my life. I own a home, I own a successful business, I'm comfortably well-off, people respect me. I'm realistic - (just like me,) other people are generally more interested in their own accomplisments, discomfort, hopes and fears, than they are in mine.
I'm excited. This is finally a chance to be the "real Stacey" with people I knew for my entire childhood - a second opportunity for acquaintance and friendship with people I wanted to know then, but couldn't.
I'm angry at the lost chance to have had relationships with people from my childhood for all of these many years.
Wish me luck, I'm going to my reunion.
SOS to the world sent by
Stacey
8
bottles washed up on the shore
It's getting harder and harder to get a picture of myself that makes me look the way I feel. I don't feel old, but when I look in the mirror I don't recognize that woman looking back at me. I have grey hair, jowls, wrinkles on my neck and a few *ahem* extra pounds hanging on everywhere.
I wonder what happened to that pretty little girl I used to be. On the heels of that thought comes the realization that I'd rather be the "girl" I am now 'cause the little girl was a real idiot.
currently stalking... |
[-] |




Now keep in mind that every year, I have to dig up 10-15 walnut trees from various locations in our yard, usually flowerbeds or up against the foundation of the house. Also, we have no walnut trees in our yard. Little boogers carry them in.
I see this diabolical little rodent heading for my new lawn, and I jump up and start yelling "oh no you don't! I see you! Don't even think about it! No, no no NO!" like a crazy woman.
Squirrel stops, and runs up this tree so he can look at me through the window. Then he jumps down and saunters over to the grown lawn, jams in down in the grass, then runs and grabs a leaf and smashes that down on top of the walnut. Mission accomplished, bitch.
I ran out there with my camera, and spotted my neighbor's "hunter" cat, watching the whole thing, doing nothing. What good is an outdoor cat if he can't even run the squirrels off?