Let’s play a little game here to pass a few minutes before we officially begin. What did you do during the summer that was fun, unusual, exciting or flat weird? I’ll pick a random comment for a sur-prize, okay? I’m not even sure what it will be but something cool and maybe related to my summer activities…

My main projects were two. First I got a scanner, a pretty good photo quality one, and went to work on a ginormous collection of photos that I wound up heir to. My dad had been a photo journalist and writer who illustrated a lot of his stuff with photos so I had a big batch from there. Then both he and my late father in law took a lot of family and scenic shots and my late hubby and I did too. There were even some from almost ancient history in all the families involved. I cannot even identify some of the folks in them but it is really interesting. I expect there are 10,000 or more–prints, slides, negatives and transparencies. It is daunting but I will keep plugging along.

I’m also working– at a slow pace –on my own family history and memoir e-book–I guess it will be an e-book anyway. I’ve been reading the journals that I started when I was twelve and that’s been a trip. I led a rather unusual life and had a bunch of adventures that few in modern times got to experience. I’m blogging about some of that on  www.deirdre-fourds.blogspot.com if anyone is interested in one room schools, horse craziness and such!

The other project, which a friend talked me into trying, is selling some of the jewelry I make at a local farmers’ and crafters’ market that runs two days a week for a couple of hours–or until the fresh produce is gone.  That got me back into more creating too so I am now itching to get my lapidary and silver smithing equipment back up but currently must be content with beads, chains, charms and the like. But it is fun and something I have enjoyed doing for a long time. I had a bad eye infection in June and wasn’t able to spend a lot of computer time or even read too much for awhile so did a bit of sewing and jewelry stuff which was a little easier on the old peepers. Other than walking my dog almost every day and going to my high school reunion in Arizona in June that is about all I did!