photo shoot, what's up...

I slept 16 hours last night.  16 hours.  I laid down around 4 PM to get a short nap and didn't wake up until 8 AM this morning.  I do this once or twice a month when my body needs it.  Wow.  When this happens I sleep solidly.  I don't feel refreshed when I wake up.  I never do.  I haven't in many years.  This is a problem with fibromyalgia.  You don't get enough oxygen to your muscles and organs when you sleep so you don't feel refreshed when you wake up.  Ever.  16 hours is better than two or three, which is what I get a lot of nights.

My kitty, Boo, made sure I woke up this morning.  He meowed every two or three minutes after 7 AM.  Whenever something is unusual, he will do this.  My sleeping this long was unusual, and he wanted to make sure I was okay, so he kept meowing.  I may have slept even longer had he not done this.  It's funny, Boo and I go to bed together on the same bed, but when I wake up he is on a chair by my bed staring at me.  Always.  No matter what time I wake up.  It could be 6 AM and I could wake up every five minutes.  He is STILL staring at me.  It kind of spooks me out.  Staring Boo.

Now on to Krissy's photo shoot.  The subject for this week's photo shoot is "the letter 'T'... something that begins with the letter or resembles the letter".

I have three photos today.  The first two are my children's tattoos.  Matt has a tattoo of a treble clef.  That is two t's.  LOL...  Matt has another tattoo on his other arm of a music symbol in Mandarin.  I don't have a picture of that, though.

                        

This is Chelsea's tattoo.  It's on her lower back...

                

I don't have any tattoos.  I have always wanted to get one.  I can't get one, though, as I am on blood thinners because of my shunt.  I know what I would get and where, though.  Do you have a tattoo?  Would you get one?

Finally, this is a shot I took of "two T's" in the sky with a rainbow behind it.  If you look closely you can see a double rainbow.



If you would like to play Krissy's photo shoot visit her journal.  She posts a new subject every week.

Thanks for stopping by!!  Hope you're having a good weekend, journal pal =)!! xox

Tags: The Original JLand Photo Shoot with Krissy, JLand Photo Shoot, photo shoot, photo hunt, photography, fibromyalgia, T, tattoos, rainbow, have a nice weekend!

Photo Shoot #124, what's new with me...

                

I wasn't sure what I was going to post for Krissy's photo shoot this week because I am still unable to upload from my camera onto  my computer.  I have had a professional look at this box and he still can't figure out why I can't.  I guess I will have to wait until my next computer to be able to use my camera =( .  It's sad.  I visited old pictures to decide what to post.  The subject is "a close up".  I decided to do an animal theme as well.

This is dedicated to my sister D. who lives in Florida and has a birthday today!  HAPPY BIRTHDAY, D.!!!!!  I love you and miss you!!!   The first two creatures I shot were in Florida when I was visiting my daughter while she was delivering Josiah.  Boy, that was 17 months ago!...

This is a salamander I chased ALL OVER the back yard of my daughter's apartment.  The neighbors must have thought I was a loon!  I finally caught a shot of him in the air conditioner vent.  He was funny.  Every time I was ready to take a shot he would RUN!  LOL  I was fascinated that there were actually so many salamanders in homes in this interesting state.  LOL...

              

The second shot is of a friendly bird.  I was chasing him all over the road.  Again, the neighbors must have thought I was a kook.  Or maybe just a tourist who never saw wildlife.  LOL  He, too, would move every time I was ready to take a shot.  Here is my nice little birdie crossing the street...

                

Finally, here is Mr. Michael, my sister Krissy's lovely Maine Coon.  He is so nice, so sweet, so loving...

              

I wanted to CONGRATULATE Krissy on a new look for her photo shoot and a third successful year!!  Wow, 124 hunts!   Krissy started back in October 2004 and is still going strong!  Congratulations, Krissy!

I haven't been posting a lot lately.  There have been major changes in my life (or the people in my life).  Chelsea and her babies moved back to Florida.  It was a GREAT SHOCK.  I miss them sorely.  I thought this could happen, but not so soon.  They left a few days before Christmas.  It hurts.  I was in mourning for some time.  I was seeing the boys every day.  I was talking to Josiah on the phone daily, too, and now I can't.  It's hard.

Also, my son is visiting from Florida.  Now, that is a good thing, but he told me he is moving to Texas after the visit.  Texas???  That was weird.  He lost his scholarship at school because funding was low, so he is moving to Texas where his girlfriend lives.  Oh, and my stepson, Michael got married and is moving to Texas, too.  Yes, got married.  And is moving to Texas.  LOL  I love his wife, Nicole.  Michael is going into active duty.  So much, so soon.  Everyone leaving.  I am happy to see them having lives, though, but I had to "absorb" everything the last month.  I will be back topost again very soon.  Thanks for visiting me this morning and viewing my "close-up" entry.  If you would like to participate in Krissy's next photo shoot visit her journal and see what the next subject is!  Have a good Sunday, everyone!! xox

Update:  On a side note, my son told me that the creature in the air conditioning unit is NOT a salamander.  It is a lizard.  I guess I don't know my amphibians?  Reptiles?  LOL  I need to go read...

Tags: The Original JLand Photo Shoot with Krissy, photo shoot, photo hunt, photography, close up, Florida, salamanders, birds, Congratulations Krissy!, Happy Birthday Deirdre!

Photo Hunt #123 participants...

Photo Scavenger Hunt #123 participants

subject:  "New"

We received a good number of submissions this week!  Thanks so much you guys!  YOU ROCK!!  These entries are very creative, so please visit and leave a comment if you are able.  Krissy and I would like to thank the following journal for participating:

     Photo Trek
     Promise... Me
     Gina's Space
     Linda's World
     Footprints in the Sand
     ALMOST Paradise II
     Smiles House (private)
     My Hugs Journal
     Breakaway
     Perception
     This and that, and hockey!

Thanks again, everyone!  You did a wonderful job!  Krissy will have this week's subject at her journal later on today so please go check her out and see what it is.  She will be picking it up again.  Let's support her on her first month back in a few long months!  Thanks, Krissy, for honoring me by allowing me to do your Hunt for this period of time.  I love you, darlin'!

I hope everyone is having a good start to their week!  Oh, and hi Sara, ~waving~!!  Nice to have you back doing the Hunt!!

 

Tags: Photo Scavenger Hunt with Krissy, photo scavenger hunt, photo hunt, photo shoot, photography, new, what's new?, blogplugs

Photo Hunt subject...

         

Photo Scavenger Hunt #123 will be due on Sunday, January 6, at 11:00 PM EST.
                                              
Our subject this week is:  "New"

I am picking up the very first Hunt of the new year for Krissy and am very honored.  Thank you, Krissy.  I thought the subject "New" would be an appropriate one.  Krissy will be back at the helm very, very soon.  I will let you know when.  Thanks for being patient while we took a break for the holidays.  The Hunt will be every week as scheduled.  You may interpret the subject any way you wish.  PLEASE post your submissions by copying your FULL entry URL and pasting it into the comments section below.  If you have any questions about how to do this (or how to upload or post photos) do not hesitate to send me an email at valphish@aol.com.  I hope everyone had a wonderful New Year's Eve and I am wishing all the best for 2008!!  Hugs, Val xox

            

Tags: Photo Scavenger Hunt with Krissy, photo scavenger hunt, photo hunt, photography, new, what's new?, blogplugs, pull out that camera and show us some of your world!

aoljurlAdd, aoljurlAdd_3

Merry Christmas!...

From my home to yours...

Wishing you blessings, safety and joy on this Christmas Day.  I hope you are spending it with loved ones.   My wish is that you may have some time today to meditate on why we have this holy-day.  God bless you, my dear readers.  Love, Val xox
    

Tags: Merry Christmas!, Jesus is the Reason for The Season, meditatate on Him!

Facts on suicide; What you can do...

I got these facts on suicide from SPAN USA.  I hope you can take the time to read them and follow the link at the bottom to a site that lists things you can do to help.  This is a issue that is dear to my heart.  I have placed a free suicide hotline number in a red box in my sidebar if anyone needs it.  It will remain there.  Thanks, my friends.  I will be back soon to let everyone know what is up in my life.  Alot has happened.  Chelsea and her boys are on their way back to Florida.  They moved =(  AGAIN.  Stay warm, take care and be good to one another.  Hugs, Val xox

FACTS ON SUICIDE

* More than 31,000 Americans die by suicide each year.
* There is 1 suicide every 16 minutes and 88 suicides per day.
* Suicide is the:
   
    - 11th leading cause of death overall in America;
    - 3rd leading cause of death for young Americans between the
       ages of 10-24; and
    - 2nd leading cause of death for American college-aged students.

* For every US suicide death there are 8 to 26 attempts.
* There are an estimated 1.4 million attempts per year in the U.S.
* For every suicide death there are an estimated six new
   survivors.

Suicide is an often ignored and stigmatized topic

* Suicide deaths consistently outnumber homicide deaths by a margin
   of three to two.       
* There are more suicides globally than deaths from war and violence
   combined. 
* Approximately twice as many Americansdie by suicides than from  
   HIV/AID.

Suicides can be prevented

* More than 90 percent of people who die by suicide have depression
   or another diagnosable mental or substance abuse disorder.
* In a national poll, 78 percent of Americans think that many
   suicides are preventable with appropriate research, interventions
   and services.
* And 86% of Americans surveyed think it is important to invest in
  the prevention of suicide.

Risk and protective factors can vary according to age, gender, ethnic group, or occupation, and can vary over time. Some examples, are:

* 20% of all suicide deaths occur among veterans.
* More women attempt suicide, more men die by suicide.
* 80% of completed suicides are men.
* Elderly comprise 12.6% of the population yet account for 16% of
   suicides.
* Older white men have the highest suicide rate of all age groups.
* According to several nationally representative studies, in any given
   year, about 5% to 7% of adults have a serious mental illness. A
   similar percentage of children (about 5% to 9%) have a serious
   emotional disturbance.
* These figures mean that millions of adults and children are disabled
   by mental illnesses every year.
* In addition to the tragedy of lost lives, mental illnesses come with a
   devastatingly high financial cost.  In the U.S., the annual economic,
   indirect cost of mental illnesses is estimated to be $79 billion
   ($63 billion in lost productivity, $12 billion in mortality costs, and
   $4 billion in productivity losses for incarcerated individuals and
   for the time of those who provide family care).

What you can do

            

Tags: suicide, Suicide Prevention Action Network USA, SPAN USA, depression, mental illness, suicide prevention, please help, this is for you Jessie

This is for Jessica...

I got a call from a really good friend about three weeks ago telling me that her 18 year-old daughter, Jessica, who was in college, had killed herself.  I was dumbstruck.  She was so, so young!  I felt so ill when I heard this.  So sick to my stomach.  I didn't know what to say to her.  All I could do was "be there for her" and allow her to talk about it.  We have been friends for about six years.  Then a neighbor in town here killed himself about a week ago.   I have been walking around in a sort of "fog".    I am no stranger to suicides.  I have had several friends/acquaintances who have killed themselves over the past 20 years.  I am in the mental health system (I am bipolar and have OCD) and have met quite a few people who have been depressed.  I have talked people out of suicide before.  Suicide doesn't have to happen.  I have been suicidal myself.  It is the worst felling you can ever feel.  It is a "soul pain".  When someone is feeling this way, it is hard to convince them that they will ever feel any other way but what they are feeling.  I belong to The National Suicide Prevention Network.  I got an email from them this morning.  I was reading and found out that the highest rate of suicide is actually among the elderly.  If you want to do something this holiday season, visit this website, plug in your zip code and sign some petitions, make some phone calls and get educated!!  Also, if you are feeling suicidal yourself, I have a free, national suicide hotline number in the links in my sidebar.  It will always be listed there.  They are there to help you.  Please give them a call.  You can email me as well.  I care.

         

Tags: suicide, depression, bipolar, OCD, National Suicide Prevention Network, SPAN USA, free suicide hotline, suicide hotline, blogplugs, this is for you Jessie!