Backing up

"One day at a time unless they all attack at once."

One of the things I've learned the hard way is to back up your files. Two years ago when my computer went down during a power surging, butt kicking winter snow storm, I realized I had nothing, I mean nothing backed up. I thought for sure I was toast and I had earned the burn. Bob, computer genius, once again managed to save not only mr computer but all my files on it. And somehow managed to get Apple to pay for the replacement power thingy that had fried.
You know the saying that behind every good man is a good woman, backing him up? Ok I added the backing up part because it seems to fit with todays blog about backing up, but not just in a lip service kind of way. Jan is the ying to Bobs yang, and when you call Valley Software, trying to contain your panic, her voice is like honey on toast, shes calm, never loses her patience, and most of the time can get you out of the jam before, as a last resort, she turns you over to Bob or tells you to bring the computer in.
Backing up... I swore I would not get myself in the wiggly place i was in last time, and two years ago I bought an external drive on ebay and backed up my files. Since Bob had to rebuild my computer from the ground up this time, it hasn't been the smoothest restart, small things are not happening, like despite his best efforts, Firefox was running when the mothership went down and I lost all my bookmarks.
The one thing that did set me into panic mode last night was the font factor, two fonts I had been working with on my website overhaul, one I had downloaded from Emigre and another missing font I use all the time, nowhere to be found in the rebuilt font folder which I guess goes into the default format when the computers' OS is reinstalled. This morning I plugged in my external hard drive with little hope I had actually backed up my fonts, but there they were.
My miracle d'jour.

Mothership crashes

From one pain in the neck to another, my computer crashed right in the middle of updating my website files. I went from making some serious progress to staring at a teeny tiny folder on my desktop with a flashing question mark.
Its been days of feeling lost in more ways than one and hours hanging out at Valley Software hoping for a quick fix. Like my neck problem, this one took days to resolve as well. Thanks to the friendly folks there at VS, I somehow pulled through with an intact sense of humor, and what feels like a new computer.
Thanks Bob and Jan, once again you guys are the best.

Whats New

This week I have finally gotten around to working on redoing my website, something that has been on the 'to do' list for about a year. Relearning Dreamweaver, painful but rewarding... I'm almost there, have to add some pages and refine a few things, but it will be much more professional and less personal.
On the homefront, this week Lori moved up from New Mexico and into my studio rental. She is a breath of fresh air, a fun and creative spirit. Today we took her to the downtown Grants Pass Growers market, got some tamales and we hit a few garage sales on the way home.
Big fun in Oregon.

Earthsayers

In September of 2007 Ruth Ann Barrett of Red Direct approached me about working with her on a video based website. Earthsayers.tv was launched in 2008.
I'm posting the series of "category stamps" I created for Earthsayers.tv illustrated around the theme of sustainability. My blog head incorporates a slice of one of these illustrations. She has been using them for various applications, presentations, and they have been adapted to merchandise available through Cafepress.com.

Landslide

My 5 for 5 line was so successful I won the raffle ticket seller prize for the third year. The second place winner sold 719 tickets I sold 3,260 (in ten concerts). I won a pair of tickets to a concert of my choice next summer, and fifteen minutes of fame at the picnic, which was a blast. Afterwards we trolled the streets of J-ville picking up all kinds of free stuff people had put out, leftover from the citywide sale.
Still my neck is totally messed up but I found some leftover painkillers from 06' when I broke my wrist, and along with the Advil I've been mainlining I'm almost back to normal.
We're having a mini heatwave, the temps are approaching triple digits in the daytime, and right now the crickets are singing up a storm to an almost full moon while I'm typing this post.
Dave and I headed out to Kerby today to get more fresh corn, tomatoes and assorted produce, a great day for a drive. We stopped by Joans' on the way back to pick up some eggs and take some pictures of her guinea pigs so I could post another ad on Craigslist for her.
A great day for pictures and painkillers.

Weakend warriors

This weekend has thrashed me. There was a 2 day city wide garage sale in Jacksonville we covered a fraction of on Saturday, as well as picking up the french doors. Blocks and blocks of treasures, we left exhausted with a car full of booty. We head back there in another two hours for the volunteer picnic at The Britt.
Posting a picture of the new downstairs area Dave created on Friday with some cedar fence boards while I was working at the hospital. Used to be an eyesore, the trash is hidden now, and a string of lights makes it a sweet environment and perfect place for the table and chairs I bought a few months ago.
Better bust a move, there will still be a few sales going on I will be tempted to hit in spite of my neck feeling wounded and out of whack, no doubt from trying to keep Maggie on a leash as we walked around yesterday.

Stepping outside the box

Besides the Britt, I work as a volunteer at Three Rivers Hospital. Friday morning was my shift and my brain needs, desires and requires the mental gymnastics. Its been a blur of a month (and summer) of company and work assignments, so I've only put in one other day in August.
I thought when I signed on there to volunteer that I would be sitting at a desk passing out pamphlets or something similarly unchallenging. As it turned out they wanted me to work at the surgery intake desk because of my people skills. Twenty years of working for myself, I thought my people skills were in need of people so I signed on. What I have realized over the past 8 months of working there is how my brain and its imminent functioning has always singularly revolved around problem solving the creative process. Rewiring my brain at 55 to work this position has been a very challenging and rewarding road on many levels.
There is a massive flow chart to keep current as patients check in, their arrival time, family members cell phone numbers, what they are wearing to identify them and in what section they are sitting in, it all needs to be recorded because of HIPPA, you can no longer holler their names across the waiting room.
The core needs to be called that they are here, OR after their procedure, a call downstairs for discharge and a wheelchair. In a morning we check in about twenty to thirty patients for surgery or colonoscophys. Along with the information that must be recorded and the phones, the biggest and most important part of the position is to be simultaneously social and comforting to the patients and family members.
Frankly, my brain has never had multi-task on this level in my lifetime...until now.
One of the reasons I have hung in there and not transferred over to one of the numerous other available volunteer spots, like in the library where I could stare at the computer for hours, (something I am very experienced with) are the women I work with.
I am so impressed with the level of professionalism and social grace these individuals possess. Their brains are in the moment, firing on all cylinders, and they make me want to step outside the creative box and get my feet wet in a different way and world that in no way resembles Greys Anatomy, or any other hospital show I've watched or rolled my eyes over and clicked on or off on the boob tube.
This gratitude moment is about stepping outside the box, one that challenges me and fulfills, in a way unlike any other.
The photo above was taken as I was leaving home Friday morning, a country block from my driveway at 7:15 am