Writing as Therapy

This is an interesting article on the value of writing as therapy from CNN

My corollary is that therefore scrapbooking leads to a better life from yet another angle.

Why I Scrapbook

Digital goodies from The Daily Digi. Journaling stamp from Sugarplum Paperie


I must be crazy. I'm taking Finding Photo Freedom AND LOAD (at Big Picture Classes)at the same time! Well maybe not so crazy. The beginning weeks of LOAD overlap with the last part of FPF, and while LOAD is just getting going in a fairly slow-paced way, FPF is a review class for me, and I'm mostly tweaking my system, which is already mostly in place.

I'm getting huge value out of FPF, though, even though this is the 3rd time I've taken the class. There are little things here or there that I just haven't had time to do in previously classes that I'm getting to now, like using the Digital Workflow cards and redesigning them to suit my workflow. This is really big! (As Stacy would say) It's going to be a huge help to keeping track of where I am in tagging and starring my photos. I've been doing the work, but in a rather catch-as-catch-can fashion, and that makes me put off getting back to it because I have to figure out where I am every time.

I'm also hugely happy with last week's work. Trish & I totally cleared out our storage binders. Now, this may sound like Library of Memories heresy, but here's our reason. We are both almost totally digital these days. So we really don't need physical storage binders and prints because we have them set up on our computers, and are in the process of getting all of our thousands of digital photos sorted through and the best into digital storage binders.

That means that we no longer need to keep photos in storage binders. We did some real power scrapping, creating quick layouts of many of the photos (adding 30-50 layouts to our albums!! Some of the "layouts" were really divided page protectors with a quick journaling card. But hey, the stories are told and in our albums! Many, many of our photos went into category drawers because we tend to take a lot of category drawer kind of photos these days rather than event photos. Our children are all grown, and events just are as much a part of our lives as they used to be.

For me, going forward, the only photos I'll print are 1) finished digital pages 2) photos for a specific special project like a mini-book or photo album scrapbook or 3) photos to put in a photo album for my grandkids to look at. It lives at my house. They love to look at photos of things we've done together, and I like to have that handy and accessible for them. But that's easy, and one granddaughter in particular like to help me put the photos into their album.

Hence, we have no need for stoarge binders. Traditional scrapping will now be done out of our category drawers, and we forsee a day when those will be cleared out, either by scrapping them, scanning ones we want to use repeatedly, and putting the rest into cold storage or the circular file. I personally am hoping the use a bunch of my category drawer folders for LOAD layouts.

For us, this is a stage in the Library of Memories journey that makes perfect sense. It will, of couree, not be the thing for everyone.

So, maybe I'm not so crazy for taking FPF & LOAD at the same time. I'm really looking forward to a very productive summer scrapbooking. And as I found out last week, it feels really, really, good to get the stories told and into albums. So while I have to admit to feeling a bit intimidated by load, I'm sure that Lain will help us get there in the best way possible, and I'll feel oh-so-good to put those layouts into my albums.

Creativity

Here's a link to a lovely post on creativity


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Journaling in the Metadata

I think this post at Digiscrap 101 is a really important concept. This is a game changer.

I think that the combination of stories and photographs is very powerful and the most important part of being a family story teller. Going forward, I see this as the most important part of my job when I deal with photos. I'm bumping the journaling up in the workflow.

New workflow order:

Photos onto computer
Purge
Journal
Star-1 Stars to Flickr; 2 & 3 stars to quarterly highlight smart albums
Keyword
Online backup of 2 & 3 star photos, including metadata
USB or EHD backup including metadata
Scrap as inspired


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Facets

You aren’t exactly the same person with your work colleagues as you are with your parents, your friends, your partner, your children, or people you meet in other contexts. Every relationship brings out a different aspect of your personality. You don’t express everything to everyone, all day long. - Mark McGuinness at Lateral Action


This quote got me thinking about being multifaceted, which led me to think about God, who never changes but is more multifaceted than us, I'm sure.

It's still me when I'm in my professional, teaching role, but it's only one facet of who I am. It's very different than the me my grandchildren see. It's different than who I am with friends, and that is a little different from friend to friend. It's not being phony, it's being who you are in a way that is appropriate to the context you are in. Behaving otherwise would be both ridiculous and hurtful.

I think it's the same with God. Who He reveals himself to be to me is not going to be exactly the same with someone else. Of course we don't always see accurately (and we can twist what we think we see), and even when we've got the right picture, it isn't as clear as it will one day be. We only see some of the facets.

At any point in time, our understanding of who He is will be incomplete. And I think even that is part of God's grace to us. Things beyond our comprehension aren't going to help us and may even harm us. Because He loves us, he gives us what we need, even in terms of relationship with Him. No more, no less. And for us, that is perfect, complete and whole in that moment.


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Interesting chart on the relative weight gain of various foods

You Don't Want Fries With That

Vision and Photography

"What matters, all that matters, is the photographs you create. The images are what
matter. They are what last. They are memory protectors. They are history for
peoples of the future." -Scott Bourne

Ger Scott's free ebook.

I love what he has to say about vision and photography.

I would add to the above quote that the stories also matter.

My Pinterest Scrapbook Inspiration Board

Pinterest Scrapbook Inspiration

I'm Totally Confused

I have no idea why this sound file plays when you open up my blog. I know, it's irritating. No time right now to figure out what's up. Ack.

Alike/Different

Here's my layout for Log Your Memory's Challenge #24, Compare and Contrast. Since hubby & I are very different in many ways, this was fun to do. In the end, the things we have in common are much more important than the differences!

On another scrapbooking note, I took a long look last night at the files in the Photo Freedom class I'm taking at Big Picture Classes. I've decided I'm actually going nto print out the weekly task lists & keep them on my clip board right by the computer. That way, when I have a few minutes, I can check off any tasks that I feel would be good to get done. Since I'm taking this as an alumni, I've got a lot of the system in place already. But there are some parts of it that I'd like to give another try or tweak.

One of those is the Workflow Cards. I didn't really use them last year. But I tend to get lost in what I did/didn't do with my digital pictures, and this would be a good way to keep track. So, I have printed them out on one sheet of cardstock, both sides and they are on a jump ring right by my computer. Now I'm going to have to go watch Stacy's video explaining just how to use them again.

This week's assignment includes preparing a digital workflow. Here's what I've come up with:

1. Download photos from camera & iPhone onto the computer
2. Delete the unusable photos, near duplicates, etc
3. Give them a star rating (this plus the fact that they are automatically filed by date equals my digital storage binders
4. Add keywords - this essentially puts them into category drawers
5. Edit (I usually do this as I scrap them)
6. Backup highlight folders quarterly. I have automatic backups via Time Machine, so I'm comfortable backing up these folders every quarter.

Maybe 5 & 6 should be reversed, or maybe editing doesn't belong in this part of the workflow. But sometimes I edit on the spot. I'll have to sort that one out.

In my garden

I've been sitting in my garden, with almost zero energy due to the fact that I have yet another sinus infection. I looked up from reading blogs on my iPad to see this sight. The ginger has grown so tall, that this blossom has managed to intrude itself into the papaya tree's space, right next to this cute little papaya blossom.

And since my point & shoot (the best camera I've got) was upstairs, I grabbed my phone & took the photo. I agree with Chase Jarvis that the best camera is the one you have with you.


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Heritage Album

Here's the beginning of my heritage album. I've been spending the better part of a year researching my roots, and am finally getting to the point that I am ready to gather it all together for everyone else to enjoy.

The album is an American Crafts Modern D-ring album, the paper is from K&Company and Ancestry.com. The letters are from Parisian Anthology by Pink Paislee.

More photos will follow as I get a chance to work on it.

Respect for artists

Artists of all kinds deserve respect for their work. Click on the link and read.


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Ideas on Staying Creative

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Deployment

The day has come, D is deployed. We got to hear from him at the various stops along the way, and he has safely arrived at the base. Now for the long wait for him to come home again.

He is in an area that has been relatively safe, but that is heating up as the summer starts and withdrawal begins. So of course, as his mom, I'm concerned for his safety, even though he is in a relatively safe job, not having to leave the baee to perform his duties.

Digital Layout kit ArtPlay Palette MiniKit No. 10 from Anna Aspnes