The First Day Of Winter

Happy first day of winter! It's the solstice, another season turning.Though it's the first day of winter in the northern hemisphere.......it's the first day of summer in the southern hemisphere.

Botanical Garden Buenos Aires today

Some of you are snowed in, and some of you are not. My trumpet vine is blooming like crazy (as are the Sweet Olive and Night Blooming Jasmine). All the plants in the yard were unfazed by the unusual snowfall we had last week in New Orleans.
I'm cleaning out my clipping files, so you 're going to get one of those lazy scrap booking kind of posts today, of all the white inspiration things I've collected, under today's heading of Winter White. I'm dumping them after this. Do you ever clean out your files? Delete stuff?
I know it's lazy, lazy, lazy, but sometimes I just want to zone out and look at the pretty pictures.
I collect them on Google Images, and I am too careless to document all the sources. So if you see a photo that's yours, please let me know and I will gratefully give credit where credit is due.
mizvtheb@yahoo.com
I recently caught up with a story about a beloved blogger who disappeared some months ago. I haven't removed her from my blog roll, because I think she's really there somewhere.
It's Felicity from All Things Bright and Beautiful. She was a pure blogger. I won't bother to give you her link, because it ain't dere no more. She self deleted.
She never divulged her identity. Her cute little avatar was a girl with a big hat hiding her face (it reminded me of the New York City food critic Gael Greene).We knew she was a mother with young children, and a photographer. We knew she lived in Asia.
She was always so cheerful and sweet. She commented on other blogs, and supported newcomers (me included). She wrote great tutorials on the nuts and bolts of blogging, written in language that non tech gals could understand.
She published the most beautiful photos, always taking care to make sure they were of the highest quality, both in selection, and in clarity. She was a stickler about copy rights.
Many bloggers are so good about giving credits with the photos they use. I am not. It's just too much for me to track down sources, or even type in names and check that they are accurate. We are all drinking from the same well so to speak, and many of the photos that show up are used over and over by all of us.
When I do a piece on a photographer, or I know the designer, or I know the blogger, or I know the writer, or I know the arist, then of course, I give lots of credit and links.
Otherwise I depend on you seeing your work and hopefully not kicking my ass for using an image without a credit line.
Before you get all righteous and write me mean things (mostly from you anon haters), I have not seen one blog that doesn't get story ideas, photos, or copy from other sources with or without credit given.
Blogging has changed the way materials are used, and I think copy right laws will change in time too. I respect the talent that makes the original material, but I don't have time to do the right clerical thing. Sorry. When I get flush, I'll hire an assistant to take care of that detail.
Sometimes a blogger actually uses all their own original photos, and they ask that you e-mail them for permission. This I will do. In fact in the next couple of weeks, I have someone to present to you and she was very sweet about granting permission.
In fact most bloggers are very generous in the sharing department.
But back to Felicity. Apparently she had a real meltdown because the blogging got the best of her, as in it being an addiction. Her three year old child would beg mommy to please stop blogging. Cholo begs me to stop too.
The remarkable thing is that Felicity had just been blogging for one year. I've said this before, but I think one month in blog time, is like uber dog years or something.
I have my moments of not wanting to blog, and I went cold turkey for a couple of weeks. At first it's really hard not to open the reproachful laptop. But after a few days, it gets easier to disconnect.
The blogosphere goes on without you of course. A few friends made along the way, do send e-mail to make sure you're not laying dead and alone with the cats eating your flesh (remember Miranda in Sex And The City having that fear?). Felicity even disconnected her e-mail!
After awhile, I went back to blogging. It's a part of my life now, and I like it that way.
Felicity said she was always preoccupied and thinking about what to write on her blog. I can relate to that. Creative people are like ticking non sequitors, one thought leading to another willy nilly. There's always noise and excitement rattling around in the old cabeza. It's a real bother to deal with everyday things like house work, meals, and chores.
It takes real effort to stay in the world, and not just do the thing that excites you. But even achieving that balance is a tightrope of excitement. I just got a job that let's me use my blogging skills. I could not be happier. I feel like an angel came into my life.
I like my process, because it's me. I've always been like this. Of course there comes a time to crash and chill, and I do that very well too.
I'm glad there are so many others like me, and so many others who love me and understand and appreciate my crazy ass arty ways. I feel the same way about them.
By the way, if you'd like to read Felicity's letter from the other side, go tho Corrine's terrific blog Hidden In France. She and Felicity were great blog friends. They never met. But they had a bond, and Felicity didn't leave her friend worrying about the cats eating her flesh.
Could you ever delete your blog the way Felicity did?
I think Felicity's story would make a great screen play...