Toermaline's 2012-52

Beautiful colors

Week 14 theme; vision

Camera: Hipstamatic
Lens: John S
Film: Ina's 1969
Flash: off
Subject: Fog setting in at night at our temp. living spot during evacuation @ Wilson River near Tillamook, OR
Title: limited vision



Changed my upload for this week, wasn't happy with what I had previously submitted

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Sorry for the late addition.
My beloved iMac broke down, he was just 4 years old. :-( yes I did back up. All except my email. I had trouble getting my Dropbox back up which stores automagically all my iPhone photos every time I connect. The photo I needed was on there.
I ended up taking a new one.

Week 15: theme - shiny
Camera: Camera Awesome
Processing : Photogene - Dream filter and inner glow
Subject: my shiny brand new iMac.

Week 16, theme: Green

I did not do much with this photo, maybe not very 'artsy' but beautiful to me. It was one of the first days of the year I could get out of the house and into the yard. This photo is very special to me as it represents a small moment of joy and happiness and that is what (my) life is all about, to find small moments like these in every day.

Camera: Hipstamatic
Lens: John's
Film: Ina's
Processing: none

Thank you Cat and Lisa!

very nice pic

Week 17, theme: reflection.

This week the body did not want to listen to the mind and over ruled a lot of suggestions when the mind said it wanted to go out and have fun taking pics. Somehow this yo-yo weather we are having in Oregon is for a large part to blame. Anyways I managed to get to the yard and snip a few photos of the kiddy pool that we have for the dogs to splash around in.

The reflection you see if from the giganormous silver pine we have. It has very large branches, tick and lush. The branches are so large that when it rains I can sit under them on the bench and stay dry. Dogs don't care about the rain the chase the ball anyhow, but I like to stay dry, especially because my espresson gets watered down when too much rains falls in it. Yuck! ;-)

Camera: my new best buddy Streetmate. Only shoots black and white, no processing. Only thing you can change is the size of the film. This one is shot with 50mm. I love it because it forces you to focus on the story you want to tell and not of the artificial effects.

Processing: Awesome camera, rotate and applied texture Sandbox.

Subject: reflection of the Big Silver Pine tree in the doggy pool.

Week 18, theme; Positive.

This is going to be long.
A little background info is needed with this photo. It couldn't have come at a better time. May 12 is International Awareness Day for Neuro-Immune Diseases such as Gulf War Disease, MS, Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Myalgic Enchephalomyelitis also known as M.E.

It's my turn to create a tiny bit of awareness about an illness that is so disabling and that receives so little research. Our goal is to ask the government, any government, to allocate more money for research for ME. In the USA are about 1 million patients and our research fund was last year 1 million USD, 1 dollar per patient. In comparison, MS with 470.000 patients received 270 million.

The cause of ME is not (officially) known yet and thus no medication or treatment is available. Anyone who tells you this illness is not deadly is not informed, this year is only 5 months old and we already lost 4 dear friends. So research is urgently needed.

In 2009 we had an exciting result from a privately funded research project, a new retro virus was discovered. A retro virus is a virus that copies your DNA so it can not be recognized by your immune system anymore. There are only a few retro viruses known, one of them is the HIV virus. This new virus is called XMRV. It was exciting to know that so many people with ME tested positive for XMRV. Now finally a treatment and medications could be developed. Right ... Not so fast. The government is now 3 years later while my friends are dying still busy with bickering and trying to replicate the lab testings. So even though we did make some progress we're still ' the living death' as one researcher and doctor called us.

The photo I use is a photo I took from my Lab results. I tested positive for the XMRV virus.

Camera: 100Cameras by Trey Ratcliff
Filter: when the sky stopped crying
Frame: Camera Awesome, Vaded
Subject: Lab paper.



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Thank you Cat, that means a lot to me.

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Thanks so much Lisa. I was pondering my decision to post it or not. I realize it can be off- putting for a lot of people. But I'm glad I did , if I can only make one person understand its worth it.

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This was not so good week for me, I will not bore you with details but I could not venture outside. Which had me p*ssed off because the weather was gorgeous. Because of the bad week I have to post and older photo. Nothing to do with the subject I'm afraid.

The subject is the 'Bridge of Gods' over the Columbia River. The bridge is so small that the person working to collect the toll will tell you to put your mirrors in if you don't need new ones. And yes we crossed the bridge with our 40ft 5th wheeler. Needless to say I had my eyes closed. the photo was taken just when a particular dark clout was passing over.

Camera: Hipstamatic
Lens : John S.
Film: Nina's 1969
No Flash
No other processing
Date: Oct 2011 - Hood River



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Sorry no photo from me this week, too ill. :-( Can I still come out next week and play?

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I totally agree with Lisa. You are in my prayers.