Zoom - you are a star.

This weekend was a very special day for my daughter. She sent this short email to us, celebrating a special agility competition.
Hey Mum,
Zoomy was a star on Saturday night. She got 2 more agility qualis with a win and a second against some top notch dogs. I was very proud of her. It was also the last leg needed for her MAAD and her AAC.
Here's the one run that we got on the new video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neJHRv9jPRA

What is special about this is that Zoom, the youngest of her three agility dogs, has been suffering from many varied diseases, some genetic, and others caused by medication prescribed to treat the first - thyroid problems, Addisons disease and others. So to deal with these illnesses, manipulate medication to achieve an acceptable balance, and then to compete so well is an achievement for Zoom, and of course Tracey and Glenn.

Credits: Sultry Summer by Julie ItIs (JSouthern) at Plain Digital Wrapper

A busy day with family history puzzles today.

My puzzles: Who was Samuel Hallam? where was he born and when did he die?

I know he married Hannah Hadfield in Bradfield, Yks 12 Feb 1810. I know he had at least three sons Alfred 1814-15, Edric Hallam 1817-1861, Reuben Hallam 1819-1908- also known as Wadsworth Jack.

Reuben spent his life in entertaining others- musician, singer, author, newspaper columnist, portrait artist, boxer, actor, cutler, cricket player, publican- the list seems endless.
Of Edric, Reuben's brother and my ancestor, little is known- other than birth, marriage, death, a child and a trade (cutler). He married young and died in his middle age, and almost certainly did not enjoy similar exploits to his brother. Of parents Samuel Hallam and Hannah Hatfield even less is known.
So this is my current puzzle to solve -who was Samuel Hallam? and what did he do in life?

Oct 24 Starting a new blog at Blogspot

It's almost the year's end and I have just transferred my blog from Podbean to Blogspot, so lots of posts, but all are out of date. I don't think I am able to post podcasts and moving gifs on this new site, although I am sure I can find a way to link these.

2008 has been an interesting year in many ways.
Some highlights: holiday in Europe;
Tracey competing at World Championships in Dog Agility;
Rob building a Taj Mahal shed in our backyard;
Sandie meeting with new cousins in England.

Some lowlights: Tracey's first and most devoted dog, Billy, died at age 15. We will miss him so much, as he has been our grand-dog since he was just a puppy;
Sandie's ankle injury took over 6 months to mend;
Rob once again practised pushing a wheelchair.

(Layout credits: Throw Me a Bone Scrapbook Kit created by Courtney Warren of Come Together Cards& Susan L. Gabriel of SueAngel Designs)

Jan 2007 New Year Resolutions

Jan 2007
One of my major interests is in family history and current family. So this year, 2007, I am keeping a picture log of my family, friends and community, for future generations to enjoy.
My resolution is to take a photo a day, then I am attempting to digitally scrap these into layouts, using Photoshop. Some I may post to this site. Time will be against me- seven scrap pages a week- almost Mission Impossible, unless I make the designs quick and simple.
One of the pages from January- storm season means gutters need regular cleaning. I used vellum overlays, one textured in a brick pattern, to frame the central figure.

April 2007 Two naughty girls...

April-May 2007

Tracey's horses enjoying a dip in the dam.

Vista: My dislikes so far:
· no MOVE menu feature for moving files from one folder to another (at present, using COPY-PASTE, then delete the file)
· No FIND tool, only SEARCH - and you need to know where to search - a blanket search for a specific gif file did not work for me. I needed to visually search all my folders to find the file
· difficult to find way around the organisational structure (eg get into Windows to look at setups etc)
· Help is non-existent as the computer cannot find it or connect to on-line pages . Will need to find out why.
Looks like a few tutorials are needed
MY Likes:
· Folder display size
· Slide show of images
· Analogue clock face on sidebar
I hope Vista grows on me. (and I hope not too many of my school teacher co-workers invest in it yet as I'm certainly not up to speed to answer any questions.)
Ipod: this week saw me convert a PhotoStory movie tutorial to play on the Ipod. Tutorial was made from screen captures for images. worked fine.
No podcast this week, but aiming for a videocast next week. This week is a more vibrant animation series. (my lost gif file)

I spent today playing with Adobe Photoshop 6 & Adobe Image Ready. My aim was to follow a tutorial and create a simple scrapbook layout with animation. The result is not bad, but rather dull, as the tutorial suggested using muted colours, black and white photos (gif images have limited colours). I will experiment to see which colours and how bright I can make this.
I used a series of photos of family members for this first -trial- layout. Now I know the technical aspects, I'll become more creative, with different place and space changes.I may even make a podcasts - video of how to make this item. (future).

Sep 2007 Snow 98 years old

Sep 2007
We wondered about whether Snow would be well enough to celebrate his 98th birthday in September. In the weeks before his birthday, his health had been of concern - a tumble resulted in black eye, head gash and numerous bruises. He wasn't able to get around unaided- and refused a walking stick or walker.
Luckily on his birthday he was relatively clear in mind and fit in body, so we drove him to Clem's home for a gathering of all his children . Snow dozed most of the day, but was alert for the cake cutting- a red Kombie van just like the one he drove in the 1960s.
Jayne and Mark, Rob and I are still busy looking after the gardens and clearing the house and Snow's tool collection. Some surprise finds include about 100 drill bits in only 2 sizes, about 500 sheets of sandpaper and emery paper, and millions of rusty bits and bobs.

Rob and I still visit Snow every fortnight and Jean, CLem's wife, visits on Friday afternoons. Many days Snow is not very aware of our presence, and now wants to doze off a lot, often only awake for 10 minutes at a time.
Some days he talks about the past- travelling in the sulky, the old life in Gayndah and Monto, the hard times in Southern Cross and at Richmond, about the jobs he has had - building a church at Jambin, painting the Richmond Station, Biloela hospital, his sign writing and glass painting.

Sadly Snow departed this life 4 weeks after his 98th birthday. Unusually, Rob saw the need to visit with Snow on a Friday, instead of our usual Sunday. Snow was lucid and in very good spirits and Rob had a most enjoyable visit. Snow died about 36 hours later- just did not wake up one morning.

(Layout Credits: Watch element by Tina Williams)

Jan 2007 Personal Challenges

JAN 2007 Personal Challenges
The start of my New Year - a ride in a 1925 Whippet- bright yellow. This was such an unexpected and most unusual event for me that it prompted me to think of other ways to make other days and my life a little bit different.
One is to start this blog to be filled with my thoughts, reflections and experiences in my work, genealogy and craft pursuits.
My second is to explore new technologies - podcasts, powerpoints and ipods, wireless networking, a photo-a-day.
Another is to solve a puzzle a day (Logic puzzle, Soduko, Pixel Puzzle, Cryptic Crossword) or learn a new word each day.
The last was to keep a daily diary of everyday events.