And it all came crashing down...

Wow... I can't believe its been two months since my last post. Well... I can and I can't. It seems like it was just last week when I was happily typing away on my Christmas Quilt project and how everything seemed to be moving full steam ahead.

And then it suddenly wasn't.

My computer crashed, and it crashed hard. Yes, I had a computer crash earlier this year, where the beautiful workhorse I had built to my specifications turned up toes and went home to that great motherboard in the sky. There was panic, there was SERIOUS PANIC, panic in the ways of stomach turning and tears that I had lost all of my photography files, cross stitch patterns, etc.  Thankfully, the majority of my files were able to be salvaged and put onto an external hard drive. We had purchased a refurbished computer for Richard not much earlier, but without any fanfare he quietly set up his new-to-him-but-used computer and went back to using his old one.

Well, at least I didn't actually kill the "new" one... I just overwhelmed it to the point where it was running massively slow and then finally froze up. Its simple 1 TB drive (hey, if it isn't a baking measurement then the size means nothing to be, other than its supposed to be a lot) was overwhelmed by all of my photo, music and pattern files and just couldn't hold any more. It drew a line in the sand that I hadn't even noticed and that final month of churning out cross stitch patterns right and left are not only what took me across that line, but absolutely obliterated it.

This time there were no moments of tears and frustration... only that sinking feeling in my stomach as I came to the realization that the earlier temporary bandage had hemorrhaged under the amount of pressure I had placed on it. Instead of a cast to help the system heal I had left the jury-rigged splint on, failed to maintain it and just kept on running in a marathon that I had no business inflicting on it.

So we first purchased a new external hard drive... 5 TB this time, and Richard slowly began transferring files over. Sadly, a lot didn't make it through the transition, but I didn't now that for sure until we managed to get me a new (not sorta new but not really... this one here is The Real McCoy). Even better, this one came with a seriously nice 27" widescreen monitor... something my aging eyes is very grateful for.

So what has been lost?

I seem to still have most of my music files, and the photography is good, though I lost all of the more recent edited shots, so i'll have to edit them again if I want those specific shots back. I have, however, lost all of my recently worked up cross stitch pattern files (over 200, which equates to several hundreds of hours), which breaks my heart, but its nothing I can't rebuild, given time. Its a project I should be well in the middle of replacing, but winter is really playing havoc with my health, so I haven't had much time that I can spend in front of the computer.

Basically I have lost all of the work I have done since my last computer crash earlier this year. My computer had been set up to back up to the external hard drive on a regular basis, but didn't and it failed to notify me that it wasn't performing its routine back up (something I have now learned to verify for myself rather than trusting technology to do it for me).

I now keep the majority of my files on external drives, rather than tax my computer's systems. One drive (my 5 TB workhorse that I have lovingly named "Big Red", because he's red, he's not huge physically, but hey, its the biggest drive i've ever owned, thanks  to Amazon holding an amazing sale), and my 1 TB "Old Blue" (not really old, but he's older than Red and, yes, he is blue) is going to be solely for back ups. I'll purchase a 3rd drive soon that I will transfer all of our music files to (as well as digitize that big box of CDs sitting in my office) so Richard and I can shuttle music between ourselves as needed, as Red is going to be slowly filled up between my photo and pattern files, and the amount of music we have already digitized is pretty substantial.

So yes, this time I am doing it right, and even though it will take time, I will retrace my steps and remake the patterns that were lost. Now that I have a computer to get back online with, the posts will start coming on a regular basis again. I am sorry it has taken this long to start it back up, but now that the injury has been dealt with (instead of field dressings think Steve Austin's Six Million Dollar Man... we had the technology and my computing capabilities certainly got a nice upgrade), I can make up for the lost time and get to it. Best of all, the old computing speed is now a thing of the past, so I should be able to cut those hundreds of hours down to something a little more manageable.

Its great to be back, and I hope that you will hang in there as I get everything back on track and do things right this time.

Thanks for being there everyone, and I hope that all is well in whatever part of the world that you find yourself in.

Oh, and don't forget your back ups!

It's been a long time coming...

It is amazing how time flies, isn't it?

I have been working lately on getting my Etsy shops, Bluecreek Creations and Bluecreek Photography up and running, and am now finally ready to start listing.

That's right, Bluecreek Creations has its first item up for sale.

Its a custom vinyl featuring my favorite teen detective, Trixie Belden. I had no intention originally of offering decals, but if these do well then more will be added down the line.

More items will be listed through the weekend, including my Totem Bags (more on those in another post) and various custom cross-stitch patterns.  

Bluecreek Photography will start listing in a week or so, as I decided to focus on the crafting side first.

I have always wanted to create and sell my own crafts, and now I am finally seeing it come to life. I can't begin to express just how excited I am to see this come to fruition.  I've never had large aims, and have never aspired to be the next Martha Stewart; I just wanted to put my stuff out there and see if anyone else would enjoy the things that I did.  

Here's hoping that someone will.

I Heart Faces - Beautiful Eyes

This photo was submitted to the I Heart Faces photo challenge – www.iheartfaces.com

Well, for the first time ever I have decided to do a "I Heart Faces" photo challenge.  The current challenge is "Beautiful Eyes" and ever since I read that I keep thinking of this photograph I took of my best friend's youngest daughter.  Sarah is the most naturally beautiful girls I have ever met, and I loved this pic I snapped of her a couple years ago at a party.   She had no idea I was even taking her picture at the time, and I love the way the light just catches her face.

Be sure to click on the image for a better view!

Freedom Festival Parade 2012

I hadn't posted this earlier because its a bit negative in tone, but decided I really didn't want to sugar coat my experiences of the day, so I have left it as it was....

Fourth of July.... early a.m.

The DJ down the street was asking people to dance the Funky Chicken in the street, and would toss shout-outs to the group of marathon runners as they streamed past. We were stationed at the head of the parade route, watching a street juggler performing off to one side of us, but the kid was so nervous that he kept dropping things and having to run after them.  Kids were running in the street, tossing a football back and forth to help keep boredom at bay.

After the balloons had soared away we had made our way to the parade route to secure a spot... a spot that, at first, had us at the front of the line.  As the pre-parade started, I began snapping pictures of the various characters as they went by. After a few minutes of this, a late-coming family decided to set up their blankets behind us and then demanded that we sit down as we were blocking their view.  Pretty rude, I thought, as we complied, sitting down on the bare pavement. After all, we'd been there for over an hour already and I made sure to set ourselves up in an area where no one else was sitting. Well that lasted about fifteen minutes and then I had to stand up and move behind the family (who happily took our spots) as my back began hurting. Bare pavement for your seat and a bad back certainly do not go together, besides, I was tired of the mother's bad attitude and on-going muttered comments that the front line should be saved for little children, not full-grown adults.

We stood there through all of the pre-parade, and for part of the official parade before another family showed up with big chairs, shoving us further back, as they were joining a group who had already parked themselves off to our left. I admit that I hadn't had much sleep the night before so I was getting pretty irritated by this time.   These late arrivals settled in with no regard as to leaving space for anyone else. The teenagers that had saved their spot were even more annoying as they were loud and obnoxious, yelling comments at anything and everything that passed, be it part of the parade or someone walking along the route, looking for a place to sit; several of those comments were a bit crude and definitely not very kind.

We stuck it out for another fifteen minutes or so before we decided we'd watched enough (sadly, the pre-parade was far more interesting than the parade actual)..... but I admit we also left partially because my back was really not happy, and where we were crammed to by that point left us with no wiggle room for me to move around, but mainly because I couldn't stand another minute of the rudeness around me without snapping at someone (as I said, I really had no sleep the night before, so by this point I was very tired and cranky). I do, however, believe that people should be polite and respectful to one another, and we certainly weren't seeing that on this day.

So I packed up my camera and we wove our way around people, blankets, coolers and the like, crossed between parade floats and walked back to the car.

I did wind up with a few good shots from the parade though...

The "Sons of Helaman" Road Warriors.... I got a big kick out of their patch....

If the Beloved got his way he'd paint his car like this...

Everyone loves the Chic-Fil-A cow!

"Defying Gravity".... these boys were on a big trampoline being pulled down the street and were bouncing so high that they were able to touch the street lights

Navajo dancers....

The force was certainly with this guy

Detail on an old military Jeep

Showing off some wicked high kicks.... I am sure she must have been exhausted by the end of the parade.

Ready for her close-up....

These two guys were amazing....I just wish I could have gotten a shot without the horse butting in!

I fell in love with this puppet....

Just look at that craggy old face!

Boys of the Revolution

What are you looking at?

Farmers Market

Moscow, Idaho...... late September. The skies are pearlescent, with a soft rain misting down. The temperature is surprisingly warm, considering the weather on this, the final day of Moscow's Farmers Market. No more booths of vegetables, hand carved woodworks, natural soaps and local honey for another year...

The wonderful thing about Farmers Markets (other than the delicious, home grown goodies) is the delightful images that capture your eye everywhere you look.

I think its fairly obvious that I especially loved the leeks....

Lake Drive.....

With the inversion we've had lately the skies have been rather splendid, so I took a drive out to the lake Friday evening after work, hoping to catch a fiery sunset over the frozen ice. No such luck, as it was too cloudy out, but I snapped pictures anyway of the little things that caught my eye. Here is a few of the fruits of that trip.....

Autumn Photoshoot

Now I do not normally do photoshoots.... mainly because I am more comfortable photographing nature. Nature does not get upset if you missed the shot you hoped for and have to try again. Nature also doesn't get fussy about the weather, or long hours, or any other hiccups that can happen along the way.

Portrait photographers are also natural born cheerleaders... they can keep a running groove of energy and sunshine that helps keep younger kids entertained, while still keeping everyone on focus to get the shoot done with the least amount of muss and fuss.

I have recently made a few exceptions... while I have taken candids at casual functions, I started taking date night/dance shots for my favorite teen... which lead to being asked to take her senior pictures. I agreed, with a lot of reservations about it, because this was not something I really had experience in. I agreed because she asked me to, and I have a hard time telling this girl no.

Her request was that we do shots in all seasons, starting with the fall. Surprisingly, it was not only a lot of fun, but the shots turned out far better than I could have imagined. Now with the winter shots out of the way as well, I am looking forward to the spring shoot (she's heading to a summer job at the end of May, so summer may not end up happening). Of course, taking photos of someone you are close to is easier than taking those of strangers, and an individual is always easier than a group (duh, right?)

Here's just a few of my favorite shots from the autumn session...

January Photoshoot

Sorry everyone, but here is a link to a photoshoot I did last weekend. I really should have posted it here, instead of on my main account, but then, I never claimed to have it all figured out. If you haven't already read this on my "Ramblings" blog, feel free to follow the link and see a few of the lovely shots I captured out in the wintery chill.

Independence Day 2012 - Freedom Festival Balloon Launch

 5 am. 

The day was full of birdsong when my alarm went off.  I hit snooze, rolled over and attempted to get a little more sleep, but it refused to come.  Grumpily I looked to the window, noted that it was still fairly dark outside, and crawled out of bed.  I slumped off to the bathroom to run my shower, berating myself for stupidly staying up until after two am that morning.

6 am found Richard and I on the road, making our way to Provo where the annual Freedom Festival balloon launch was being held.  I had read online that the balloons would start filling for launch at 6:30 so we knew we still had time.  However, it quickly became apparent that a lot of people had planned to attend the same event, and we found ourselves in a bit of a traffic jam.  We found a place to park a few blocks away and made our way to the field, joining the crowd of people all heading in the same direction.

When we got to the part I was amazed at how many people had packed themselves into a space the size of a football field. 

Then I focused on the balloons and forgot the crowds around me.  The sun had not yet cleared the nearby mountains, but the light that filled the air lit these wonders with a translucency that was surreal.  The event must have actually started at 6, because many of the balloons were close to being filled already...

I pulled out my camera and began snapping shot after shot, wandering from one slowly filling balloon after another, utterly entranced as balloons, filled, began launching into the air and drifting off slowly, like seeds blown from a puff of dandelion.

Here are just a few of the shots from that morning. Tomorrow I will share some of my favorite shots from the parade that followed...