Linda's Photo Journal

A Stroll in the Snow

2012-01-21T10:17:00.004-05:00

Bob tried out the snowshoes I gave him for Christmas.

According to Bob, he didn't "float" like he thought he would. Bob thinks be might be pushing the weight limit of the shoes.

Another contributing factor could be that the snow is powdery, not dense.

Bob says he will try again in different conditions, not that he really WANTS any more snow.

Feeding Frenzy

2012-01-20T11:32:00.003-05:00

A flock of starlings swooped down into our back yard this morning and proceeded to feast on the bird seed in our feeders.

The starlings must have heard about the winter weather advisory in effect from 7:00 PM this evening through 10:00 AM tomorrow morning. An additional 4-6 inches of snow are expected.

Smells Good

2012-01-18T15:28:00.001-05:00

I have chili simmering on the stove. It smells good in here!

Not a Great Start to the Day

2012-01-16T11:22:00.005-05:00

I wanted to run some errands today. I put on my coat and reached into my purse for keys. No keys! I looked EVERYWHERE for my keys. No luck. I sent Bob a text at work to ask if he perchance has my keys. I expect to hear back from him shortly after noon. I hope that Bob has my keys, otherwise I have no clue where they might be.

I started laundry this morning. A few minutes ago I went to the basement to move the laundry from the washer to the dryer. Shoot! I forgot to shut the lid when I put the laundry in the washer. So the water didn't drain. It's going to take a bit longer than expected to do the laundry today!

I hope rest of my day goes better!

**UPDATE: It is 3:51 PM. Bob came home from work and found my keys. They were in one of his coverall pockets. Bob believes he picked up my keys on Saturday morning, thinking they were his. Funny thing is I checked his coverall pockets earlier today and didn't find the keys in there!**

**My laundry is done too!**

My Office View

2012-01-15T17:52:00.004-05:00

I really like how the furniture is arranged in my office, since replacing the roll-top desk with a corner desk.

I can bird watch.

A female and a male Junco

a Starling

a Downy Woodpecker

I can enjoy watching the northeast sky as it changes color while the sun is setting.

All from the comfort of my office chair.

Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!

2012-01-14T14:20:00.004-05:00

We've no place to go. Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

I decided not to attend my niece's baby shower today because of the inclement weather conditions. It is a 2-hour drive from here to the location of the baby shower. I didn't relish the idea of driving on slick, snow-covered roads. I wouldn't have enjoyed the shower either, as I would be wondering about the road conditions for on the way back home.

Thunder, Lightning AND Blowing Snow!

2012-01-13T13:43:00.003-05:00

It isn't odd for me to be awakened at night. I am a light sleeper. However, it is unusual to be awakened by thunder, lightning AND blowing snow! This oddity happened around 1:30 this morning for about 20 minutes. The thunderstorm heralded in much colder air and a major snowstorm.

This is what our back yard looked like around noon today.

We have two weather alerts. A winter weather advisory remains in effect until 7:00 this evening. A lake effect snow warning remains in effect from 7:00 this evening to 4:00 PM Saturday.

I took the yardstick out and measured the snow in our front yard. As of 1:30 PM, there is at least 6 inches snow accumulation on the ground. Another 2-3 inches of snow accumulation is expected by this evening. Then another 6-10 inches of snow is likely tonight and Saturday. At the moment there is a lull in snow activity. Snow is falling, but lightly. Periods of heavy lake effect snows are expected later today through much of Saturday, as the wind shifts to a more westerly direction and carries significant moisture inland from Lake Erie.

My niece's baby shower is tomorrow afternoon. It is a 2-hour drive from my house to the location of the baby shower. I have a big question mark right now because of current and anticipated weather conditions, as to whether or not my stepdaughter and I will make it to the baby shower.

We have had a mild Winter thus far. We have had only one Winter storm this season that resulted in measurable snow. We received under 6 inches of snow from that storm. We knew it was only time before Old Man Winter would release his fury on us!

This Weekend's Highlights

2012-01-09T14:15:00.000-05:00

It was a quiet weekend; however, I do have a few things to share with you.

In an earlier blog post I mentioned that my stepdaughter is pregnant with twins. On Friday Stacey had a sonogram, in which neither baby appeared to be a boy. Twin girls...how exciting! I would be just as excited, though, if both babies were boys or if Stacey were carrying one of each.

On Saturday Bob and I went on a shopping trip to Erie. We left home mid morning. Bob took an out-of-the-way route by a few miles to show me a picturesque property ... a farm located near Route 27 in Garland, PA. The farm is called Oak Alley Farms. When we got home from Erie, I searched for the farm on the Internet and found the Oak Alley Farms website.

Our first stop in Erie was at Millcreek Mall, where we made three purchases.

We purchased a Cuisinart Egg Cooker.
Bob has made two batches of hard-boiled eggs since Saturday. The egg cooker works very well.

In addition to the egg cooker, we purchased a pair of Ryka walking shoes for me and a baby shower gift for our new great niece. Stacey and I will be attending Elise's baby shower on Saturday, January 14. I am looking forward to meeting baby Elise!

We ate lunch at Old Country Buffet, a favorite stop when in Erie.

We made a quick stop at Staples (didn't buy anything) and headed home. We were on our way home by 1:35 pm. Our shopping trips rarely last for very long!

On Sunday our friends, Dave and Susan M., stopped by so that Bob could look at Susan's laptop computer. The computer was purchased in August, last year, and the disk is already full! Bob looked over the computer and discovered that Dell's backup utility was automatically backing up data to the C drive. Bob deleted the backup and removed the utility. There is lots of space on the C drive now; Susan is happy.

While Dave and Susan were here, Stacey and Mike dropped by for a short visit. Before long everyone had left.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, it was a quiet weekend.

Contrails

2012-01-06T18:52:00.008-05:00

This evening's sunset was a pleasure to behold.

contrails

contrail cloud:
evidence of a journey
swept away on winds

as lives
speed invisible
through Earth's
ocean sky.

Poem © 2008 R. Burnett Baker

A Favorite Pastime

2012-01-05T17:13:00.011-05:00

One of my favorite pastimes is reading. My books of choice are romance novels, although I enjoy other genres from time to time. My favorite romance writers include Belva Plain, Nora Roberts, Nicholas Sparks, Danielle Steel, Robert James Walker and Phyliss A. Whitney.

In December 2008 I received an iPod for having the most upsells in the call center at which I worked on a part-time basis. I soon discovered a new way to enjoy my favorite pastime.

In March 2009 I subscribed to a 14-day trial of the AudibleListener Platinum plan, which included two free audio books. On March 14, 2009 I downloaded Danielle Steel's "One Day at a Time" and Nora Roberts' "Tribute". As I read each book, I found that my reading experience was enriched by the feeling of a pause, a breath or a smile through my headphones. At the end of the 14-day trial period, I chose to keep my Audible membership at a cost of $22.95 for two downloads a month. From March through September 2009 I downloaded ten additional audio books:

"Crossroads" by Belva Plain
"True Betrayals" by Nora Roberts
"Someone Knows my Name" by Lawrence Hill
"Salem Falls" by Jodi Picoult
"Black Hills" by Nora Roberts
"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson
"The Girl Who Played with Fire" by Stieg Larsson
"The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
"The Shack" by William P. Young
"The Last Song" by Nicholas Sparks

I "retired" from my call center job in May 2009. The cost for Audible was an unnecessary expense, so I ended the subscription in September 2009. I returned to work in August 2010 but did not reinstate the AudibleListener Plantinum plan subscription. I was reading, but I had gone back to reading the printed word on the paper pages of a book.

Along comes Christmas 2010. Bob gave me a Kindle for Christmas, and I discovered yet another way to enjoy my favorite pastime. Since December 2010 I have downloaded the following books onto my Kindle:

"Safe Haven" by Nicholas Sparks
"Vision in White" by Nora Roberts
"Bed of Roses" by Nora Roberts
"Savor the Moment" by Nora Roberts
"Happily Ever After" by Nora Roberts
"One Deadly Sister" by Rod Hoisington
"Summer Secrets" by Barb Freethy
"Public Secrets" by Nora Roberts
"Bridleton" by Becky Barker
"The Outsider: A Novel (Shaker)" by Ann H. Gabhart
"The Best of Me" by Nicholas Sparks
"Just the Way You Are" by Barbara Freethy
"Happy Birthday: A Novel" by Danielle Steel
"Legacy: A Novel" by Danielle Steel
"Deeply Devoted (the Blue Willow Brides)" by Maggie Brendan
"All She Ever Wanted" by Barbara Freethy
"Lakeside Reunion (Love Inspired)" by Lisa Jordan
"O Little Town: A Novel" by Don Reid
"The Next Always: Book One of the Inn BoonsBoro Trilogy" by Nora Roberts
"A Plain & Fancy Christmas" by Cynthia Keller
"The House of the Whispering Pines" by Anna Katharine
"Change of Heart" by Fran Shaff
"Fools Rush In" by Kristan Higgins

I like my Kindle very much. My Kindle resides in a leather book-like case. It feels like a book in my hands. I can even fold back the case, like a paperback book. I no longer have the iPod. I sold it when I purchased an iPhone. I can, however, still listen to audio books on the iPhone or on my Kindle. My preference, though, is to read the written word rather than have someone read the book to me. Audio books do still appeal to me, especially when riding in a car. I learned quickly that it is not possible for me to listen to an audio book, while lying down in the dark. I fall asleep!

Reading Kindle books is easy on the budget because Amazon and other Internet sites have books available to download free or at a very low price. In addition, my public library now offers Kindle library books for loan. The majority of the Kindle books listed above were from the public library or free. I paid for the first five books with a gift card that my wonderful husband gave to me, along with the Kindle. The Kindle provides an economical way for me to enjoy my favorite pastime. It is a good idea to keep an eye on unnecessary expenditures at all times; however, it is more important now that I am once again "retired."

Last Purchase of 2011

2012-01-03T05:30:00.001-05:00

My husband, Bob, and I went shopping at Office Max the afternoon of New Year's Eve. We purchased something for my "office".

These two pictures show what my office looked like on December 31st, before we moved things to make room for our new purchase. There is a printer stand to the left of the desk and two bookcases to the right of the desk. To the left of the printer stand is a wooden cabinet and a file cabinet. Nothing is on the wall to the left of the file cabinet, except for the door leading out of the room.

We spent part of New Year's Eve removing the contents of the desk, wooden cabinet and bookcases. Bob started to put together our new purchase late New Year's Eve. He finished the task on New Year's Day. We spent part of New Year's Day and yesterday rearranging furniture and putting away the stuff that had been removed from the desk, wooden cabinet and bookcases.

The wall to the left of the file cabinet now contains the two bookcases. We turned the file cabinet 90 degrees and moved the wooden cabinet to the window wall in order to accommodate the bookcases along this wall.

Are you wondering what was our new purchase?

You need wonder no more.

Our new purchase was a corner desk.

My office is a small room. I was pleasantly surprised that the new desk and the furniture arrangement makes the room appear more spacious. We even managed to make room for a kitty perch. The desk is a more ergonomic choice for working on the computer than was the roll-top desk.

Bob is the best husband ever. Thank you, sweetheart, for putting together my new desk! My "office" never looked better!

Thoughts on This Second Day of the New Year

2012-01-02T09:00:00.001-05:00

On this second day of the new year I want to share with you some highlights from the past year and some plans for this new year, as well as things for which I am thankful.

We became parents to an adorable little girl in February. Our little bundle of joy is a calico cat named Patches. She readily became a member of our family and filled our hearts with love. Patches turned 1 year old on August 29th.

Patches in December 2011

We didn't do as much traveling in 2011, as we have in past years. We did, however, enjoy an Easter weekend trip to Virginia, when we visited with our good friends Al and Denise. We made a return trip to Virginia in May, over the Memorial Day weekend. The highlights of that trip included a drive along Skyline Drive and visiting with my cousins, Vern and Wendy. We met Vernon and Wendy's 2-week old son during our visit. In addition, during the Labor Day weekend, we traveled to the southern shores of Lake Ontario in New York where we enjoyed walking through the Brown's Race High Falls Historic Area in Rochester, NY; seeing four lighthouses and visiting the Carousel Park at Olcott Beach. We also visited relatives during this trip. Our cousin, Chris, married Amy in July. The wedding took place in the state of Washington. During the Labor Day weekend, Chris's parents hosted an East Coast wedding reception for the newly married couple.

Amy and Chris

The main reason that our travel opportunities were limited was that summer and fall photography opportunities, which included several photo shoots, two bridal showers and four weddings, kept us close to home. In addition, I spent three days taking photographs at a local festival. You may view photographs from each event by visiting my Facebook fan page, Linda Gross Photography. Of the four weddings, two of them were family members who were married.

My stepdaughter, Stacey, married Mike in September. My niece, Emily, married Dan the following month. My middle nephew, Jared, and Sara became engaged in May. We are looking forward to Jared and Sara's wedding in July this year.

Emily and Dan became parents for the first time on December 26. Our great niece, Elise Marie, arrived at 12:23 PM that day and weighed 6 pounds 11 ounces. She was 18 inches long.

Our great niece, Elise Marie

Thank you, Emily, for allowing me to use this photograph from your Facebook page!

Stacey and Mike will be giving us our first grandchild in late May or early June this year. Did I say grandchild? I meant to say grandchildren. Stacey is pregnant WITH TWINS.

It is a tight fit in our hallway for Mike, Stacey and the twins

Christmas Eve 2011

We met three blogging friends last year. In February we met Gretchen of Gretchen's Travels, when we attended the Ridgway Chainsaw Carvers Rendezvous. In September we met Betsy of Joyful Reflections and George of Senior Moments for dinner at Cracker Barrel in Erie, PA. Betsy and George were on their way back to Tennessee after visiting with family in New York. I would love to visit with Betsy and George, as well as Gretchen, sometime this year. It would be great, too, if the opportunity presents itself to meet other blogging friends.

I begin this new year unemployed, by choice. My last day of work was December 26. The position I left was that of a cashier at a local hardware and garden store. I began work at the store on August 23, 2010. I worked 14 hours a week, spread over a three-day period. I enjoyed my job. The owners of the store are great people to work for. My co-workers were fun to work with. The customers were nice. For those of you who have read my blog for a while, you may recall that I have a torn meniscus in my right knee. The tear is not severe enough to require surgery, but painful nonetheless. I try and control the pain with anti-inflammatory medication and Tylenol. I refuse treatment by injection! Standing for long periods of time was not the best thing for my knee.

I am looking forward to my "retirement". I doubt that I will stay unemployed for rest of my employable years. I am too young to retire, and besides I won't see retirement monies for many years to come. There is a local catalog company at which I may seek employment as a seasonal employee at Christmas time. At my current stage in life I seem to be happiest when working for only a few months out of the year.

In the meantime I plan to make good use of my "retirement". I hope to spend more time with my immediate and extended family, as well as friends; to travel to places old and new; and to continue self-directed learning in all aspects of photography, a hobby of which I am most passionate. My immediate learning experience will be directed towards Lightroom3. I received Adobe Photoshop Lightroom3 from Bob for Christmas. I purchased Scott Kelby's "the Adobe Photoshop Lightroom3 book for digital photographers" to teach myself how to use Lightroom3.

We hope to do more traveling this year than we did last year. We anticipate spending a week at the Outer Banks in September with our friends, Al and Denise. We hope to attend a few motorcycling events, near and far. I would love to once again visit Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA, as well as Biltmore Estates in Asheville, NC. It would be great also if we had the time and opportunity to travel south to visit with my aunt and cousins who live in Virginia, Georgia and Florida.

I will end this blog post with a list of things that I am thankful for.

I am thankful that our personal finances are healthy. I am thankful that we have only one loan, the mortgage on our home. We own three motor vehicles (a car, a SUV and a motorcycle), none of which is newer than 2001. I am thankful that all vehicles are in good operating condition.

I am thankful that Bob and I have a happy and healthy marriage. We genuinely like one another, amuse and comfort one another, and enjoy spending time with each other.

I am thankful that we get along with each of our family members.

I am thankful for our friends, old and new.

I am thankful that Bob and I enjoy good health; however, it wouldn't hurt me to make improvements in this area. I am overweight and have been diagnosed with diabetes. It would improve my well being if this new year included better food choices, weight loss and exercise. Bob went on a low-carbohydrate diet last year and has lost at least 50 pounds. He looks great and feels so much better. Bob plans to continue on the low-carbohydrate diet.

What are your thoughts on this second day of the new year?

Change of Mind

2012-01-01T08:00:00.005-05:00

**Please note that this blog post was written initially on December 9, 2011. I am republishing it here, as the first blog post of 2012, as a starting point for my "new" blog.**

Several weeks ago I deleted all of my Flickr photographs, which numbered in the thousands. This decision was made because I had uploaded high-resolution photographs to Flickr, without watermarking them. Without going into detail, let's just say I no longer wish my photographs to be on the Internet unless they are low-resolution photographs and watermarked. Because my blog posts contain embedded Flickr photographs, I deleted Linda's Photo Journal (this blog) as well. I planned to give up blogging.

I changed my mind about blogging. Not having this blog up and not having my photographs on Flickr felt like a piece of who I am disappeared along with the blog and the Flickr photographs. Since March 2009 I invested a lot into writing this blog, telling my story. I realized that I did not want to throw it all away.

I have a monstrous task before me. I am now in the process of uploading my thousands of photographs back onto Flickr. The photographs that I am uploading are low-resolution photographs and watermarked. I will republish blog posts, as I get the pertinent pictures uploaded to Flickr and link them to the photographs in my blog. When this task is completed, I will have four blogs:

Blog posts originally written in 2009 will be republished in Linda's Photo Journal 2009.
Blog posts originally written in 2010 will be republished in Linda's Photo Journal 2010.
Blog posts originally written in 2011 will be republished in Linda's Photo Journal 2011.
Linda’s Photo Journal, the blog that you are currently reading, will contain posts from 2012 and forward. I do not intend to do any further division of my blog in the future.

Links to my 2009-2011 photo journal blogs will be available at the top, left-hand side of this blog, as they become available. Linda's Photo Journal 2011 has been completed and the link is available at the top, left-hand side of this blog.

**UPDATE: As of January 14th Linda's Photo Journal 2009 has been completed and the link is available at the top, left-hand side of this blog.**

A lot of work, yes, but I feel good. I am here again. That piece of me that disappeared is back again!