Through My Lens Art

Creativity is the Key

Through my Lens Art

Creativity is the Key

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Emotional Support Animals

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Not everyone knows what an ESA is nor do they understand the role an emotional support animal can play in someone’s life. There are those of us out there, diagnosed with mental health challenges, that rely on their ESA to function normally. I get tired of people saying “she’s just a dog” and “don’t worry, she’ll be fine” – but what about me!

My family had dogs growing up so I have been around dogs all my life. It wasn’t until I was a senior in college that I got my very first dog, from the dog pound, and he was also my first ESA.

His name was Turkey not because I went to Virginia Tech but because he was such a turkey. He was at my side when I studied and that was a tremendously calming presence. I remember playing with his paws while I worked. When I moved away to start my first job, it was wonderful to come home to someone that adored me. When I lost him, I was devastated and physically sick. This was the first time I was confronted with “he is only a dog”. Even the SPCA people seemed to think it was wrong for me to search for him and not to just adopt a needy animal. Within a couple of days, I fell in love with Heidi. She was in a cage at the SPCA and she needed me as much as I needed her.

I didn’t know that my companions played such a vital role in my health, I just knew that I loved them and enjoyed their company. Research has shown that animals play an important role in naturally altering brain chemistry by boosting oxytocin, dopamine, and serotonin – the feel-good chemicals. And being with them reduces cortisol levels which can reduce blood pressure. Here’s a short list of some other benefits:

  • Eases loneliness and can help increase social connection. We walk everyday and always have some sort of interaction with others.
  • Builds a sense of purpose: caring for an animal gives you a profound sense of responsibility which helps you develop a predictable routine. They give you a reason for getting out of bed in the morning!
  • Because of an animal’s innate ability to show attention, compassion, and awareness they are perfect companions for people suffering from PTSD and anxiety.
  • NIH studies are showing the benefits for children – having an ESA helps them deal with their emotional and social skills.
  • On the other end of the spectrum – ESA also promote healthy aging by decreasing distress, loneliness, and depression.

Menopause and empty nest syndrome hit at about the same time and my mental health took a major hit. My dog, Daisy, while a good companion, was not a cuddler. I wasn’t in a position to get a second dog so I shared my son’s dog Gladys with him. He would drop her off on his way to work and pick her up on his way home. Gladys, Daisy, and I shared many adventures.

When the pandemic hit, it was hard to maintain the sharing of Gladys so I did some searching and found Tippi. Gladys still spends time with me. Luckily she and Tippi get along.

Tippi is my current ESA. She is a wonderful companion and has been by my side through a lot. It’s hard to believe that she is now 5 years old. She had a rough start in life, when I found her, she was 3 months old, in solitary confinement at the dog pound! She was so excited to be adopted and have a big sister to teach her the tricks. And she loved being at my side. She was a year old when my husband got sick, her compassion and attention helped pull me through.

For the last four years, we have done everything together. She is happy to go for walks or just roll in the grass. When I am working, she becomes my guard dog – no big brown trucks get close without my knowing it! She is the inspiration for my book Tippi Emotional Support Dog Extraordinaire which you can read about here. I also have a page dedicated to our life together which I plan to continue adding pictures of our adventures.

Amazon A+ Content

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I decided to take advantage of the free advertising that Amazon gives you to add to your book’s product page. It is called A+ Content. I spent several hours watching YouTube videos on creating A+ Content; it seemed pretty straight forward and the content that I saw on other author’s pages looked good and it’s free.

Amazon has links to guidelines and examples in the KDP Marketing Resources under A+ Content. The guidelines include Content restrictions – you should read through this before you start.

I recommend browsing Amazon books and looking for examples of other people’s content; it shows up titled From the Publisher and is about midway down the page. Not all authors have taken advantage of this so you may have to look for it.

After browsing Amazon and looking at other’s content, I recommend sketching out what you would like for yours to look like. This is a very important step! You can have up to 5 modules.

Amazon advises you not to add text to your images, they want you to use their text boxes. I expected to be able to select my own fonts and size and color – that is not the case. I went back and looked at the examples I’d found and they definitely had unique text – more research was needed on that.

I opened up the modules I wanted to use:

  1. Large image with a header and text below
  2. 4 images with a title and text below each image
  3. Text on the left with an image on the right side; with title
  4. 3 images with a title and text below them

The first problem I ran into was not being able to get the whole image to show in my first module and the text was blasé. The image is supposed to be 970 x600 pixels I thought and mine was but it turned out cropped (I had the wrong module for what I wanted). I liked the way text played a part in others’ content, I wanted that too.

Long story short, I didn’t like the way the other modules were turning out either – it was very frustrating!  And when I looked at the Mobile Preview, the components within each module were vertically stacked instead of horizontal like I had created. Other people’s stacked nicely on mobile so I had a problem.

A+ Content was originally for products other than books which might be why it doesn’t work so well with books.

A YouTube video directed me to a website: Scrivy.co where you select Tools. They have provided, for free, a guide to each of the module examples that Amazon provides. This helps immensely! I discovered the module named Standard Image Header with Text. You don’t have to put anything into the header section nor into the text box – if they are empty, they are ignored! The image portion is 970×600. I used this as the base for all 3 modules.

Next you need software to help you create your modules. I used Photoshop. I created my images, all at 300dpi:

  • A 970×600 image base, I wanted the background to match the book cover’s main color; you can do whatever you can imagine
  • For the module with 4 images, I created my individual images 220×220 (I didn’t end up using this module)
  • For the module with 3 images, the size is 300×300 each
  • I used 375×375 for the module with the text on the left, image on the right

Once the images are prepared, Login to Amazon KDP.

  • Go to your bookshelf and get your ASIN#s for each book you are creating A+ content for; copy them somewhere to have handy when you start the content
  • Click on Marketing in the menu at the top of the page
  • Scroll down to A+ Content
  • Choose your marketplace and then click Manage A+ Content
  • Next you will click the blue box – Start creating A+ content
  • Create a Content name and select the language and you are ready to start putting it together

To begin, you click Add Module, you will be shown examples of the available modules. I used Standard Image Header with Text for all 3 modules. Remember to ignore the boxes Amazon provides for text! (Feel free to try the text boxes out and see if you like the results, you can always delete it.)

Once you have entered your creations, use the Preview button to see how it looks on mobile and desktop. You can save your work as a draft and come back to it later if needed. If everything looks good, click Next: Apply ASINs. You will need to type the ASIN where it says to Search for ASINs. When you type the number in, your book should show up.

Next, you will click Next: Review & submit. If it looks good, click Submit for approval.

If you later decide you want to change your content, after you enter the A+ Content Manager section, click on the content name you want to change and on the top right of the next screen, click Edit. I’ve made changes to each of mine as I learned more – it’s very easy.

Have fun!

Fostering pups

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I used to work with the Chatham County Animal Shelter, fostering bottle fed kittens and puppies. It was very rewarding but life got busy and it was hard to keep up. Now that I am semi-retired, I am once again fostering! This time it’s puppies only and I’m working with Blazin’ Trails Bottle Babies.

I’d forgotten the work involved with the older puppies; there’s no litter box training which means there is a lot of pee to clean up throughout the day. I was introduced to pee pads, (they weren’t around when I did this before), which sometimes worked and sometimes not. I watched as one puppy put their front feet on the pad and peed in the floor…and one of the guys like to shred the pads. The best solution was to carry them out often and hope for the best.

The two pups that I started with were about eight weeks old and weighed twelve and thirteen pounds – pretty big so carrying them around was a challenge. Luckily, they got very good at steps quickly and enjoyed racing out into the backyard to potty. With the heat we’ve been having, they didn’t want to stay out long – they figured out how to open the screen porch door and head inside to the A/C.

I wondered how I would adjust to having puppies again. It’s been a long time. After our first litter of puppies, my husband put his foot down to doing it again – it was just too hard to give them up. We did actually do a second litter because the shelter was going to euthanize them if they couldn’t find a foster. Of the eight pups we cared for, three stayed within the family.

And I wasn’t sure how Tippi would handle having to share her mother and her house. There was a little growling at first but the pups were smart and figured out what she meant and she chilled. After the first few days, they were playing chase throughout the house.

Thinking about the pros and cons of taking this on again, I remind myself that there is always another dog that needs my help once the current one finds it’s forever home. And I remember the way they look at me with love and trust, wag their tails in excitement, and play with abandon. The pros definitely outweigh the cons.

A new litter has just arrived! I’m happy to report that the older boys have been adopted!

Self Publishing: Books have arrived

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book cover for Exploring the Roots of Flamenco

Just got a copy of my book Exploring the Roots of Flamenco! I originally published it as an e-book, it’s great to be able to hold it in my hand and easily share it with friends. It feels more real than an e-book.

I learned a lot as I went through the process of self-publishing, outside of just the publishing process. I have a master’s degree in art with graphic design thrown in, so I did all the work myself. I had several volunteers to proofread – very important to get someone else’s eyes on it – they found mistakes that I missed; you read it so many times that you read what it’s supposed to say, not necessarily what it says!

Exploring the Roots of Flamenco is 200 pages with a lot of images, it needed special attention to be a reflowable e-book (one that allows the reader to adjust the font size). Fortunately, there are a lot of tutorials on LinkedIn that teach you InDesign. There are also numerous tutorials on how to create books.

I should be receiving copies of my picture books any day. The e-books look great, can’t wait to see what the paperback versions look like.

Gratitude

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portrait of small white dog

It’s the time of year; Thanksgiving encourages people to take a step back and ponder all that they are thankful for. If you meditate or journal, you may do this on a much more regular basis, if not, it is always good to make the time to think about gratitude.

Foremost, I am deeply grateful for my family and friends. Life would be very lonely without them!

I am grateful that the fates smiled on my when I found Tippi and was able to adopt her. She has gotten me through the hard times and always enhances the fun times!

Looking beyond the people that make my life worth living, I have tried to focus on what I have been able to do because of their support.

I am grateful for:

  • Being able to go for a walk in the woods everyday
  • Becoming creative again, making art does wonders for the soul
  • Publishing the 4 books that I have been procrastinating finishing
  • Getting my garden under control
  • Having the mental capacity to master Windows 11 (almost) and the software needed for self-publishing
  • Getting my website updated and finally starting to blog again!

As the cold weather arrives, I am grateful for a warm house and a safe place to be creative, as I get back to work on Myrtle and Maude’s adventures. I am re-doing the art with new techniques.

The art of handcoloring

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Hand painted photographs have been around since the invention of photography. The original intent was to add life to black and white portraits. They lost favor for a short time when color photography came on the scene but have had a resurgence since the 1960s. Contemporary artists have moved beyond traditional uses. For us, hand painting takes a photograph from the realm of modern machine-age precision to the soft, expressive life of a painting.

I find drawing stressful; it takes me a long time to get a drawing to the point that I am happy with the result. When I was in school, I focused on illustration. I spent a lot of time finding reference photographs until one day I decided I could take them myself. I used my photographs to draw from; then I began tracing what I wanted from them. Until I finally decided that I would skip the drawing and color the photograph!

This is the progression of creating a hand colored photograph of Tootsie Pops. The first image is the original photo that I took at the farmers’ market. When converting it to black and white, forget about the zone system range of grays, instead concentrate of getting a fairly light print.

As you begin coloring, keep your pencil sharp and concentrate on coloring light layers. The final image will have multiple layers and you will adjust the colors by adding light layers of other colors to get what you want.

There are many things I love about hand coloring photographs. I love the way color can be used to intensify depth and lead the viewer through an image, drawing their attention to aspects I want to be sure they don’t miss. I have total control of the color scheme and mood and whether or not I want to heighten the realism.

This last example is done with watercolor pencils and you can see that I was selective in what I chose to color; I hope that you are drawn to the little grasshopper!

Gratitude

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Today is the national holiday where we are encouraged to take the time to reflect on all the things we are thankful for. I guess it’s a good idea to have a holiday all about thanks but in reality, it’s something we need to do every day! When I take the time to reflect on my day and list what I’m thankful for, I feel so much better! My list is somewhat repetitive but that’s okay.

As I struggle to overcome my depression and anxiety, I read everything I see that deals with mental health. It’s surprising how often writing and meditation are listed as important components of coping. It can be daunting to sit down and try to write every day; I’m not very good at it but when I make the effort, I’m always pleased with the result! Don’t get me wrong, I’m not writing anything prophetic – sometimes it’s just a to-do list with comments. It can be all about what’s bugging me – it’s surprising how the “bugs” disappear or solutions suddenly appear. Some days it begins with “I don’t know what to write about today”; it’s interesting to see what comes next! But it always includes what I am grateful for.

Meditation is a harder concept for me. Especially first thing in the morning when I don’t have the wherewithal to get out of bed! But I have found that if I work to direct the thoughts that run through my head as I lie in bed, it can have a very healthy outcome. It takes practice to tell my mind that certain things are off limits but I am getting stronger and more resilient. PTSD is a strong opponent but I can win!

2 dogs going out walking

My favorite form of meditation is walking in the woods. I discovered the benefits of walking in the woods several years ago when we lived near Umstead State Park. I never felt alone there even if I didn’t see another soul. I had my girls with me – they introduced me to the benefits of stopping to smell everything and how much fun creeks are.

Once I began to feel the calm, restorative effects of the woods, I began to see faces! Photographing all the faces I see continues to be a favorite of mine. And of course there are the birds, squirrels, critters, and deer that bring joy if you slow down enough to see. Learning about the secret life of trees opened up new avenues of creative thought, the faces in the trees took on new meaning.

So on this day of thanksgiving, take a moment to reflect on all you have to be thankful for. My list is sometimes long and sometimes short but it always starts with my children, my friends that stand by me, my family and my good buddy, Tippi. Everything else is just icing on the cake!

Surviving the Pandemic or did I?

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It’s been a very long time since I sat down to write. I don’t know where to begin. All my best laid plans have gone out the window and here I am starting from scratch.

With the onset of the pandemic, the art world as I have known it, was up ended. I, along with a group of artists, were set up to take on a new gallery venture on April 17, 2020. Due to age, health issues, and a very large financial commitment, we had to bail. I don’t regret our decision but I am very sad that it happened. We are still trying to figure out how to make a go of a gallery experience – maybe someday it will become a reality. For now, we’re concentrating on being creative again!

My world continued to change as the pandemic progressed. I was furloughed and spent all my time trying to find work. A very depressing task. I was very lucky and began working full time as a tax accountant – then my husband’s hours got cut…One step forward, two steps back!

In July of 2021, Tippi joined our family. I finally found an emotional support animal – she’s a handful but full of love!

Things looked promising at the beginning of 2022. I had gotten our gallery group ready to use a print on demand service and created a virtual gallery. I finished converting my book on flamenco to an e-book and set up my website to include prints. And the pandemic was finally waning.

Then in the spring of 2022, my world changed again. My husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor. As you can imagine, everything got put on hold. I had a hard time focusing on my art, or anything for that matter, as my world began to crumble around me. Overnight, I became a full-time caregiver.

His illness was short but intense. During those four months, my son got married and my father died suddenly. I had no time to prepare for taking over all the responsibilities we had shared; a lot landed on my shoulders all at one time.

It’s been a year now and things are better. I spend a lot of time outside with Tippi, going for long walks and enjoying the sunshine. My tax job gives me something structured to focus on and I have a creative coach that is helping me focus on being creative again. It’s hard to explain how scary it is to allow one’s brain to think creatively! I guess, looking at the approach I am taking, I’m still not yet ready to welcome creative freedom. I am starting with updating my website; there are steps to follow to get the needed results, a formula if you will! It’s something creative that must be done but it doesn’t require exposing myself. The art is just sitting there waiting to be displayed.

I am struggling to be kind to myself. I count my blessing everyday: my wonderful kids are close by, I have good friends that care, family ties have been strengthened, and I have a wonderful emotional support dog that loves nothing more than to be by my side! The adversities of the past year have made me stronger in many ways. And I am finally getting back to work on my art!

Landscaping

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Downsizing has been an adventure from the get go; there is nothing here that is superfluous. I love having quick access to my things and a bright environment to work in. However, I find my favorite  workspace to be my screened in porch with a view of the woods.

We did the minimal amount of landscaping last fall to get our CO. This spring we added some perennials but got slowed down because the beds weren’t draining and we had a lot of rain. It is such a struggle to decide what to plant when one week the ground is dry and the next week it’s a puddle! It’s definitely been slow going.

We decided to save the backyard for this fall. It’s supposed to be the best time to plant, maybe Mother Nature forgot!

We started by killing all the grass (weeds), aerating, sowing grass seed, and tilling the garden beds. And then the rain started… For the last year, we’ve had standing water on a regular basis.

We took a short vacation and came back ready to dig in, literally! We started with 25 cubic feet of mulch. I drew up the garden layouts and made a shopping list. The local nursery was having their Christmas open house the Saturday we went shopping, all the bushes were 25% off!  Turns out that a lot of what I want was sold out and I would have to wait until spring. 

We found someone to help us shop; he helped us find suitable bushes and then he showed us the clearance area. Perennials up to 75% off; we filled up 4 carts! Luckily we have a Honda Element, we’d have never made it all fit. We ended up with 59 plants!

Then the rain started in earnest. We have had 5″ more rain this November than normal. It didn’t rain on Friday so we hurriedly got the sun loving plants in the front garden. Didn’t quit finish the mulch though. Saturday, the sky’s opened up and it poured; more standing water everywhere. The rain stopped early afternoon so we had high hopes that it would dry out enough to start planting the back on Sunday- my favorite spot.

The first few plants went it the ground just fine. The tilling made the ground easy to dig. It was a little muddy but definitely manageable until we got closer to the patio. The holes began to fill with water! One hole filled so fast, it was like a spigot got turned on. Daisy loved the water bowl. We used the water to water the plants, the faster we scooped it out, the faster it filled back up. The weird part is that two holes, side by side, one would fill up and the other stayed dry. I might have to find some bog plants or use planters in that area. We’ll see how long it takes for them to drain.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

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I feel like a real space cadet right out of a 1960s sci-fi movie!

I started TMS treatment last week; it is a new method for treating depression for those that are not responding well to medication. So far so good. I am getting up earlier, excited to work on projects and get them done, and no longer wishing I’d never been born.

Ever since BC/BS decided to charge me a $1300 penalty a month to continue my brand name medication, (which worked perfectly!) I have been on 7 different drugs. One actually seemed to be working but I couldn’t leave the house because everything I ate went right through me. Needless to say, the side effects were totally unlivable. The last drug only lasted 4 days, it turned me into a monster. We got a good laugh when I went back through the list of side-effects and it said to call your doctor immediately if you turned into a b…h! Not sure who they were trying to protect, me or everyone around me.

My son heard commercials on the radio for TMS treatment at Greenbrook TMS NeuroHealth Center and thought I should look into it. My gut reaction was pretty negative, it sounded flaky and it is very expensive. But I was impressed when I researched it; it’s FDA approved and covered by health insurance if you qualify. Many research universities have shared studies online, lending credibility.

TMS stands for transcranial magnetic stimulation and while it is unclear exactly how it works, it is helping many people. The Mayo Clinic explains how it works this way:

During a TMS session, an electromagnetic coil is placed against your scalp near your forehead. The electromagnet painlessly delivers a magnetic pulse that stimulates nerve cells in the region of your brain involved in mood control and depression. And it may activate regions of the brain that have decreased activity in people with depression.

Side effects are minimal, I have had a slight headache following one or two treatments but it didn’t last long. I’ll just enjoy that sci-fi feeling!