When did it all start??

When did it all start?













Someone asked me that, so I thought I'd answer here.

It's complicated and simple at the same time.

I took this photo in Vegas in 1996/97

(My memory is foggy that far back!)

I was in the middle of a divorce, I was in Vegas,

and I had discovered chatting on the internet.

I took this photo and after seeing the result,

realized that the person in the picture doesn't

look like the girl I see when I look in a mirror.  

Realizing that is probably what made me keep taking photos.

I've been doing  this ever since!

( The second photo was to prove a point to my ex.  lol )

Why do I keep taking them?  I've always been a picture taker.

From the moment I got my first camera at age 11

I've been snapping them.  As I got older, I realized

that I'm not IN any photos, because I've always taken them.

That probably has a lot to do with taking photos now as well.

As for continuing with my photos - several years ago in a chat

channel, someone asked for a photo, and I had several choices

This person asked for all of them, and I shared.  He said

"You have so many photos, you should do a calendar."

After that, I thought "Why not?"  I'll just take a series of photos

every month, something new to share.  I was able to pick and

choose who got to see what photos on an individual basis.

But it became a chore to DCC photos to people who asked.

I started putting them on a photo site with a password,

making things a whole lot easier.

Monsoon (Video attached)

There was a monsoon last evening, they're so

intense and short lived, but I enjoy them just the same!  

I have always said that I enjoy storms because I 

was born during a summer midwestern thunderstorm.

Maybe there's something to that, and maybe it's ....

just something to give me a reason for liking them!

If there's a way, I will be out in them, or glued to 

a window watching them. Especially here in the

desert, because they're often very short lived.

I think ours last night was over in less than 

30 minutes.  In the midwest if it begins to storm, 

after the 'eye' has moved on, you often get rain for the

next several hours! 

I found this post of yesterday's storm, thought I'd share.

While the one at the top is almost pretty, the reality of

our monsoons is more like this last one, it's amazing

what Mother Nature can do in 37 seconds! 

 

Taking it Easy

There is virtue in work

and there is virtue in rest.

Use both and overlook neither.

-Alan Cohen

Just taking it really easy 

for a change .....

Sadie... shhhhh.... i'm resting! 

I'm going to add a little Q&A to this post

I'm resting because I've been under a bunch

of stress lately, my doc's office called with a

referral to another doc because they found a

nodule on my lung.  So for 2 weeks now, it's

been rough on the old nerves wondering 

"what now?" and of course, the usual worst

case scenarios!   Thankfully, it's nothing

terribly wrong, a little scar tissue left over 

from what the doc assumes was a bout of

Valley Fever.  Of course, he asked if I could

remember having VF a few years ago.  I just

gave him and look and said "I'm old!  and 

I'm lucky to remember a few WEEKS ago!"

hahahaha 

The Pyschic - Q&A

The Psychic

The year was 1980.  A group of girls just out of high school, learning to find their way in the world, decide that instead of the usual Tupperware Parties they wanted to have a Psychic Party.

The hostess of the evening found a woman who does those readings at parties, and set it up so that each reading would take place in a neutral spare bedroom, away from prying eyes and gossipy mouths.

Early evening had the girls all gathered, candles lit around the room, bottles of wine open, sharing and laughing - some of it nervous laughter.  This was something definitely outside the norm of our upbringing!

I remember being skeptical about the whole thing, and made sure that I didn't wear any tell-tale jewelry, my makeup was subdued and I dressed casually in jeans and a sweater.  I was certain she wasn't going to be able to "read" anything of my future!

About half hour into the wine, the woman named Alaine knocked and entered.  She said polite hellos, gazing at each of the girls gathered. She made eye contact with each one, a polite nod in each direction.  Then her eyes met mine.  While I'm normally shy, I brazenly met her eye contact and she pointed a finger at me and said "I'm doing you last - you will take all of my energy."  I remember swallowing hard, and telling myself that of course I will be a difficult read - I don't believe in this stuff!

The other girls went before me, each having a 15 minute reading.  They all came out smiling, some of them joking about the number of kids they were told they would have when they hadn't even met their future husband!

Then it was my turn.  I went into the bedroom and closed the door, sat down across from Alaine.  She had a deck of tarot cards on the table.  She asked me to shuffle them, then took them from me and started to lay them out.  Stopping in the middle, she laid down the stack of cards, and took my hands in hers.   "Your husband rides a motorcycle."   I was silent, not wishing to give anything away.  "But not to worry, he will be safe, he's cautious.  Sometimes overly cautious."   It was a little bit on the predictable side to start.

"You didn't marry your true love, he was much older than you.  Did you part ways under a bad situation?"  I nodded yes.  I didn't tell her, but reality was I had fallen in love with him while engaged to another, and my secret hope was that he would rescue me .....  ahh, those little girl fairy-tale dreams!

"You're very creative, and you will have a girl first, then a boy.  Make sure you teach them the arts, they will be creative like you.  But down the road, I see you with six children. How very ... odd.  They appear as yours but they aren't biological."

"In your work, I see you staying long term at your jobs, first one, then a long break, then another job."

"Is there anything specific you would like to know?"

I shook my head.  No one can foresee the future.  I smiled politely and thanked her, ready to scoot out the door.

"I was right," she told me.  "You have taken a lot of energy for me to read."

Now how was I supposed to take that??

-----
This was my first encounter with something other than what I'd known all my life, being brought up going to church every week.  I'm sure you get the picture.  But how accurate was this reading?  I hadn't the forethought to ask her about the time line, so this is my perspective about 24 years later. Yes, my husband rode a motorcycle to and from work, and was definitely the overcautious type.  No, it wasn't a HOG or anything fancy, just a simple Honda.  hehehe

I will always remember Ronnie Parker.  Yes, we parted on bad terms.  I ended up married to someone else, not him.  But that's another long involved story :)

I did have a girl first, then a boy.  They each have my creativity, but not the love of doing crafty things.  That's ok, they're perfect the way they are.  As for the other four children, I married again to someone with four children, 2 boys and 2 girls.  We were the "Brady Bunch of Ohio" for a number of years.  I loved them as if they were my own, they called me Mom.

As for the jobs, my first full time job after high school, I was with the company for 22 years.  I left to be a stay at home mom to six kids, then started my current job in 2001.  I'm the kind who sticks with it for the long haul!

Sorry this was such a long read, hope I didn't bore you :)

Q&A

Often, I get asked "What are you wearing?"
Typical "pickup line" if you've spent any time
on internet chats.  *laughs*

That always makes me chuckle, because
does it really matter in the scope of things?
Not to me.

However, after a long day at work,
or if I'm just home relaxing, this is one of
my fav things to wear:  long skirt and a
stretchy bra.  Cool and loose is how we
roll in the desert heat.  :)

Five Things, Q&A

Fall has arrived

here in the Valley of the Sun

and the leaves turn quickly

as the nights get cooler.

Here are five things you

might not know about me:

I am an introvert
     (in spite of what you see here!)

I raised two handicapped children
     (Both are finding their own way in the world)

I am 54 years young
     (because I refuse to say I'm old!)

My dog, Sadie, is a joy to have around
     (Most of the time!)

Along with photography, I love to write.


I wonder how many of you are willing to tell ME five things about yourself in the comments, or email me  ( Fortheloveofgal@gmail.com )

Oldies

sometimes i wake up in the wee hours
its midnight, and i feel .... lonely.
i don't mind being alone .... most days.

but sometimes at night
i miss having someone nearby
to share things
like a cuddle
or a caress

especially during weeks
like this one.
i'm doing double duty of
my job responsibilities
in two different stores.

my legs, my feet
and my back
are tired and achy.
so i lay here in bed
stretching
and tossing and turning
trying to get comfortable.

being this busy leaves
very little time for
daily pleasures
like posting pix
for you.

In the meantime, here are
a couple from 2006 and
2008... digital cameras

have come a long way
since then, and so have i !!

Q&A: The Start

A lot of people have asked how or when did I start taking these kinds of pictures??


The first topless pic I took of myself was back in 1997.  I was on a trip to Las Vegas for a work convention.  I'd had a glass of wine or two, and on the spur of the moment snapped a picture.  This was before digital, of course, and I wondered if they wouldn't print the picture!  But they did :)






My next act of photography bravery was this one.  In the marriage, when the love life hadn't been up to par, I slipped into this outfit and paraded around the bedroom to get his attention.  Did it work? Did it help?  Nope, he was too busy on the computer.  Naive me thought he was playing games -- well, he was, but with people's lives!  (ca. 1998)













This next picture (ca 1998) was taken for a special man I met on the internet.  Recently divorced, I was craving attention and needed a little validation.  The whole deal happened, friendship bloomed, I took this pic with my first digital camera -- the clarity was terrible!  But what do you expect for $20?  But cameras going digital was exciting times!  (As a side note, it wasn't long before I packed up my kids and moved cross country to marry this "internet love" -- yeah, as expected it didn't work out in the long run.)









Ca. 2005 and digital cameras have come a lot further!  I started taking photos to share with friends I was chatting with.  And someone joked that I had enough photos to create a calendar!  While it seemed like it was a funny idea, it planted the seed to take a series of pix every month -- so I did!








My pix caught the attention of a special Man and he gifted me a wonderful new digital camera (among other things) .... It took terrific pictures (once i figured out how to use it!) From that point on, I was constantly taking pix!






Eventually it evolved into the blog. 
I like having a place
to share myself with you!!

Q&A - Who Knew?

some odd little tidbits....
as some of you know,
i go to the gym often,
on my own quest to lose
a few pounds
(no worries, I won't lose the curves!)

Today was special in that I hit a new goal:
total loss of 35 pounds since last March.
*pats herself on the back*

Humans are funny - we look in the mirror and see the person we always saw, not the new forms and shapes that happen when we work out, eat less, or do something else.  Having this blog has helped because i get to see a little bit of the progress through my photos (i still see the 'old' shape when i look in the mirror!)

i don't always shop well ... forgetting that my body is a different size now.  Every now and then i'll pull an old tshirt out of the drawer and slip it on and think wow, this thing's all stretched out! But a real measure for me hit me today:  I can wear my custom sized toe rings again!  I grabbed them out of my jewelry box and slipped them on easily, and went whoa.  Who knew toes get fatter or skinnier?  I haven't worn these toe rings since ... before 1998.  Damn, i'm proud of myself :) :) :)

Q&A's

Have you ever done something because you wanted to please another person?  Of course you have, we all have.  Sometimes even doing something that goes against the grain of who we are -- because we all want to be loved and accepted just the way we are.  And that's where I was a year ago.  I had stumbled on another blog that was anonymously nude and I was inspired!  I'd been doing self portraits like these off and on for a few years, and shared them only with friends and acquaintances.  My best friend thought it was a grand idea - and helped me come up with a few themes.  I hope the fun I've had with them shows through.

But sometimes I have doubts about it.  Do it?  or Not?  It takes an effort to be creative and do more than just snap pictures of a chubby naked body.  Another friend, upon learning what I've been doing, told me I'm too young to be alone, and what kind of man will want you when he finds out you're doing this?  Well!!  Hopefully a very special kind of man who understands me and accepts me for who I am.  But that got me wondering:  would you allow your gf or wife post pix such as this??? Would you support her if its what she wanted to do?










With posts for a little over a year now, and nearly 10,000 hits -- I want to say a great big thank you to those of you who check in here and look at my posts.

And more thank you's to the ones who leave comments. 
Your attention means a lot to me. 

Sincerely,
~Gal

Moccasins

Sometimes its difficult to convey how it feels to live here in the Valley of the Sun. The open land, the amazing changing topography as you travel in different parts. There is a deep connection here - something nearly tangible you can feel when you walk in places where others have walked. The ancient ones' philosophy of life "is a deep sense of spiritual communion with Mother Earth.  It is about being in touch with ourselves and everything around us.  It is about knowing and understanding that we are part of everything, and everything is a part of us."

May the warm winds of heaven
Blow softly upon your house.
May the Great Spirit
Bless all who enter there.
May your moccasins
Make happy tracks
In many snows,
And may the rainbow
Always touch your shoulder.

Q&A:   Back in 1998, I moved to Ohio where our family became members at Fort Ancient which contains a collection of Native American earthworks.  We would attend ceremonies and festivals, watching local Indian dance, make crafts, and see how life was lived "way back then".   And I had to have a pair of moccasins, of course!  These are well loved, well worn, and still comfy.  I then moved to Arizona in 2008, and find I am still fascinated with Native American ways and lore.  I am also in the process of reading "Ceremony" by Leslie Marmon Silko.  She is an accomplished Native American writer, and her story is centered in Arizona.  Which explains why I had to pull out my mocs and take a picture!