An Army of Women

Reading on vacation! I love having extra time to read without having to worry about not doing other things, like work. This week I'm reading Ben Sherwood's book, "The Survivors Club."

Believe it or not, this is a genre (survival stories) that I've always liked to read! Remember "Into Thin Air" by John Krackauer? There's something invigorating about reading what people survive and how they do it. You'll be surprised at how Sherwood grabs you, entertains you and of course, educates you about what humans can do when they have to.

While taking the Survivor IQ (www.survivorsclub.org) that he writes about, I discovered the Army of Women site. If you have any concerns or interest in Breast Cancer, you'll want to check out this site!

Dr. Susan Love is putting together a "volunteer army" of a million woman who would volunteer for various research studies that would help find a cure for Breast Cancer. You can decide if you want to participate in a certain study or not. So come along with me and make yourself available - it might help someone you know or even yourself! (www.armyofwomen.org)

Three years ago I was diagnosed with a pre-breast cancer (LCIS). It's got a long name but I'll spare you. My mammogram found a solo, pencil point size calcium deposit that indicated further biopsy and subsequent lumpectomy.

So I "drafted" myself last night. I joined the ARMY! My nephew was a Special Forces guy but I'm in the ARMY. I've always believed in "the power of One" but think about the muliplier factor when "I" becomes a million! Stand out amongst the trees and join me today.

Shuttered Up

Earlier in the week I cross-country skied by this old house that sits above the Stowe, VT valley. It has 180 degree views and because at home, I see my neighbors' homes, just 10 feet away on both sides, I took an interest in this old, weathered, clapboard house.

There was something else about it that caught my attention. It was the contrasting colors of the turquoise blue shutters and the red, weathered narrow clapboard of the outside walls. I made a mental note to comeback later on a day when it was sunny.

So here it is. A shot made in winter, on a +10 degree February day when nearly everyone feels the "shuttered up" feeling of little daylight, little warmth and lots of snow - at least for us folks that live in the Border States (States that Border Canada).

I was drawn to the simplicity of the wooden shutters covering a small, single, window. The clasp of the lock is in place but no lock is there to secure it. It says to me - possibility - it can be opened. It's a metaphor for all those times when we think there's an impossible task to accomplish, a heart that seems closed or when Dorothy walked all the way to Oz and the Wizard initially turned her away.

Because there's no lock, the shutters can be opened and the sun can shine into this old house. With no lock a heart can be opened. With no lock we can see beyond our limitations that were never there to begin with. All the possibilities I see and feel with a shuttered up, blue window on a red, clapboard house!

Vermont's Winter Landscape

If you love to cross-country ski, Vermont's Trapp Family Lodge can't be beat! We're here to do some classical skiing on their magnificently groomed trails and generally have fun outdoors in the winter. My muscles are telling me that I should have been doing this at home, before we left, but what the heck, falling's easy when there's a 2 foot base of snow!

So the snow's good, the skiing fantastic and the nature photography is fun - and a bit challenging. It's 2 above this morning so it was a layer-up and head out. I walked about a mile towards my destination of this open field with white birch trees. I was hoping that I wasn't too late, as the sun was getting higher in the sky. But then I realized that I was in the state of mind of Dewitt Jones. You know, that sort of "I'll take what I'm shown" kind of attitude.

Sure enough, "when the student is ready, the teacher appears." The angle of the sun was low enough to give me some shadows, yet bright enough to make the birches stand out. I did some blending of 2 exposures in Photoshop and got what I saw in my mind's eye. Since "class is still in session", I'm heading out again for some afternoon "tutoring." Stay tuned!