Mmmmmm! Yesterday was for fun… a couple of these yummy cocktails, some bargaining with the beach merchants, a little sunshine for my pasty white body, and some connecting with the nice folks at the rehearsal dinner.
Hi there!! We’re here! It was not uneventful getting here… Plane was delayed an hour, and then we were accosted by the timeshare vulture taxi drivers at the airport. Not what you want at almost 11PM… finally we arrive at our beautiful hotel, the Westin! So gorgeous! I’ll write more when we get back, or when I get some of my own photos to post… this one is from the Westin’s website!
Here is baby Amiko, only 13 days old and growing strong! So happy to have you on the planet little one! Thanks to mom Lynn and dad Mark for bringing her to me to photograph, and for a yummy lunch!
Oh my, three posts in a day… I am a blog freak!
Tonight at the local photography association meeting for PPGBA the three judges gave my print a merit score and a gold ribbon!
I love my sweetie! After having a chat with my friend Margaret (who’s life I jealously covet sometimes as she gets to photograph all my ‘crushes’ in the music biz while they are on tour), I realized that many of my photography friends have never met my wonderful husband. He lets me go and do my thing, and is so supportive of my photography work, yet remains on the sidelines, ever present and making me want to be a better person. He’s thoughtful, kind, loving, and my life before I met him was sorely lacking. He completed me in a way no one ever could, and I don’t know what I’d ever do without him. He’s the best dad, and the best husband. He’s the reason I do what I do, and my inspiration. Ok, so Margaret may get to shoot Sting and Dave Matthews, but I get to photograph my rock star husband, so I guess I am doing all right too!
Happy to announce that after two earlier attempts at sending it in and getting it back unfinished, and finally having to rush it, my passport arrived yesterday. Darned good thing since I am leaving next Friday for Nicole and Miguel’s wedding in Mexico. I knew it would be ok, but whew… talk about down to the wire. I am sure our great country needed the express fees so they can keep a tight ship running there in Washington DC, so that’s just fine. LOL! I look like a mental patient in my photo though… I am stuck with it for the next 10 years… No, I am not sharing…
My wonderful friend, Jacki V, and I have been playing one of our favorite games today. It’s called Virtual Office Mates. We get on our computers, get on the phone (sometimes we skip this part and just email back and forth instead) and we brainstorm. It’s like we’re in the same room, except it’s so blazin’ hot here today and it’s SNOWING where she is. Go figure! The extremes are funny! It’s just like two girlfriends going shopping together…. and believe me, after today, I am laden with virtual shopping bags! Danger, danger… when the two of us get going. Any way… we were in a creative mood, and this is an example of our creativity, purchases, and Josh doing what he does best, being cute…
From the Professional Photographers of America press release:
Congratulations 2008 Affiliate Newsletter Editors and Webmasters!
PPA recently held its 2008 Affiliate Communications Competition. Designed to improve affiliate publications and Web sites, and recognize those involved in producing these communication tools, the competition awards every eligible entrant one PPA merit per entry. Those who place or earn an honorable mention receive an additional merit for each winning entry.
Four qualified judges were brought together from the communications field, specializing in different segments—from public relations and consulting to Web communication. They scored the newsletters and Web sites in the following three areas:
editorial content
overall appearance
service to members
Congratulations to the 2008 Affiliate Communications Competition winners!
Category V
E-newsletter distributed in HTML or PDF format, via e-mail or online, at least 3 times per year.
1st Place: Harriet Ahlstrom, Northern Light Professional Photographers Association
Northern Light
2nd Place: Kimberly Sayre, Professional Photographers of the Greater Bay Area
The Bulletin
3rd Place: Linda R. King, Professional Photographers Guild of the Palm Beaches
PPGPB Newsletter (e-mail version)
Hon. Mention: Arlene Welsh, Professional Photographers of Oregon
In Focus
This weekend I took part in a very special project. When my good friend, Rhee Bevere, approached me with this idea I wholeheartedly signed on… She was having a conversation with a friend who mentioned this program she volunteers for. It’s a place where battered women and children escape their abusers. I am not even going to mention the name of it here because the name doesn’t matter – it’s what they do that counts, especially for these families. It is a safe place with many special services to help them escape the abuse and work toward rebuilding their lives. During her volunteer work she shared a photo of her son with one of the women. The woman burst into tears, saying she wished she had been able to save some photographs of her children – but that they were lucky to escape with the clothes on their backs… Rhee organized a group of caring women who were touched by this story, and knew we could use our talent to help heal some wounds and in some small way help these families feel that they are on the road to a new, safer life.
