15 FastScraps Templates in the store!

Wow... I guess I am taking a page from Anna Aspnes and first making stuff that *I* need and want to work with, then setting it up to sell. I love how she is true to her family first when she makes photobooks, and then puts the tested items up for sale. :) She is truly a wonderful teacher!

So, currently being a linear-graphic-wanna-jam-tons-of-photos-on-one-page person (LOL), I have been creating templates in Photoshop to use for my own pages and then sell in the store.

So far, people seem to like them and think they will be useful, and for that I am very happy. That's the whole point. No reason to packrat and just collect kits and things because you might need them someday. Do much of that, and a computer fast becomes as cluttered as a house can. I really need to know that what I am creating has value in usefulness.

I have been neglecting both of my classes, but they are touted as self-paced, and nobody seems to have a problem with some of us being behind. I find that I work best with a solid deadline, and in big chunks of inspired time. Haven't been inspired to work on the photography class, though I figured I'd consider it more of a reference than anything. I regret that the other class is the one that has seized my passion to such an extent that I spend all of my time on it. :) But... I do need to spend some totally irresponsible time for myself in the summertime or I find I get irritated at being expected to march to someone else's beat.

Busy lately, and SICK!

Well, I said I was going to be getting back to work, but I didn't count on some things:

Becoming totally disheartened by my design work (I took a break and forgot a lot of stuff I actually did know how to do...)
My real job becoming a heavy weight on my heart. I think it's because my personal life is too empty, and it's hard to get my fulfillment in life from my job. Yeah, I need a change. In a big way, and I don't know how to make that happen. But anyway....

Oh, and I spent all of the fall and most of the winter pretty much sick as a dog! I developed pneumonia over Labor Day weekend (I won't go into what triggered it, because I'm still resentful it could have been avoided) and didn't realize how sick I was until I was well into it and presumably getting better. But... I was afraid I'd once again go to the doctor and they "couldn't find what's wrong" and they'd treat me like a hypochondriac once again. I hate that, being someone who doesn't go to the doctor unless I'm in a LOT of pain... So I thought I was getting better, then I'd relapse. I doubt a doctor could have helped. Then my allergies hit me. I got better from that and had a week's peace, then I caught a cold. I thought I was out of the woods... by the time Christmas arrived, I was SURE I was well again. Tired and weak, but well.

Nope. Right after Christmas, I got the flu. My sister was having a little family shindig for New Year's, and by then I was feverish and hurting and wasn't taking a chance on passing it on to anybody I loved. So I quarantined myself. (I was beginning to think an awful lot about The Stand at that time.) And one morning I woke up to find something so badly wrong in the upper right part of my shoulder and neck that I was having trouble moving. I think the flu germs / whatever attacked the nerves in there, because it sure did hurt and I hadn't done anything but lie around trying to rest and get well. *sigh* It took a full 6 weeks for that pain to go away, during which I had a horrible time just using my right arm and being able to turn my head.

I never did go to the doctor because when I felt my worst, I couldn't drive, and when I was feeling better, I thought I was getting well. What's the point of going to the doctor then?

Besides, I've lost all faith in doctors that treat their patients like potential drug addicts. They just don't understand. I don't WANT pills or any other drugs. I just want to get WELL! I hate the obligation that comes with taking medications, and I put off taking Tylenol because I don't want to NEED anything pharmaceutical. Hey, people who really and truly know me understand why I avoid taking anything whenever possible. I've never had a problem like that but I've known too many people that have, and I hate seeing what they have done to themselves.

.........

I found a saving grace this spring in the classes I took online at reneepearson.com. I took Collage 101 (Renee Pearson) and Album Magic (Anna Aspnes) and they were worth every penny! More than just learning some new techniques in Photoshop, I felt like I had found a place among like-minded friends and I actually accomplished things! I finished 3 full-length+ printed photo books by the time the Album Magic class was over.

Needless to say, that really jazzed me for doing my own work. Right now, I'm into template making, and so far they seem to be selling, which makes me happy. If there's one thing I hate, it's completing a project and getting no outside validation for it. LOL I need people to approve! :)

I've shared my photobooks on Facebook and gotten positive response there.

Oooh! Last summer it became necessary to replace my no-frills flip phone (charger port broke) so I decided to get the biggest, baddest, 3GS iPhone on the market. I have loved it, and I especially love the Shutterfly app that lets me look at all the photos / layouts I've uploaded to my account. It helps me keep tabs on layouts I've completed so that I don't forget about them.

I have become forgetful, and I'm not even 40 yet. LOL I think it's stress. Yeah, I do. Successful completed projects make me happy, though, so I think I'll focus my spare time on doing that. Less Warcraft, more design.