Transitions....

     With summer coming to a close and me still swimming in exhilarating memories of epic adventures I need to transition into "work mode", whatever that will look like.  Gram G needs an income.

     I was recently privileged to attend the 4 day  Oregon Christian Writers Conference here in my backyard....literally, on a world scale.  It was held at the Red Lion on the River Hotel in Portland, OR across the I-5 bridge, a 20 minute drive from my house.

    I was awed and excited to meet some high profile writers and speakers.  My learning sessions on writing memoirs were intense.  I will need weeks to sort through all the tips and strategies and organizing.  
    I met one dear lady who during the conference received copies of her first published book, a novel of friends lost in the mountains of Oregon, If We Make It Home, by Christina Suzann Nelson.  I am excited to read her novel!
    The main point I learned was that writing seriously is a demanding, disciplined lifestyle.  I will discover in the coming months if I have what it takes.
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      These past two weeks I have been reprogramming my digital media, or at least trying to.  Several hours have gone into re-establishing Grandma G's Studio website, updating Grandma G's Face Book page, giving my blog a new look, connecting with Linked In and experimenting with a potential new blog. The hardest part is the bare technology to program all this and to interconnect them.  I am one of these who jump right in the water, then realize I don't know how to swim, and frantically dog-paddle to shore. Exhausting and time consuming. Today after many attempts to merge two FB pages and thinking I had it all figured out, I merged them only to discover half of my efforts were permanently deleted. It was then I noticed the directions for "saving" material from the unwanted page.  Just now, after uploading several pictures for this post I tried uploading one more and lost them all.       
      The uptake is that I now consider me to be "working" when busy with my laptop rather than "idling away the hours".  
     So with that I will keep the deleted pictures and news for another post. I invite you to explore this blog's new look and features.  
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     My heart goes out to the victims of Hurricane Harvey.  I applaud the  first responders and the volunteers who have given go much. 

     Here in the Pacific Northwest there are over 1,300 wild fires burning.  Just tonight they have come close to home.  A large fire is burning in the Columbia River Gorge.  

Ash rained down on my car in the driveway.
An east wind will continue to blow through tonight and into Tuesday.  Our temperatures are running in the high 90's.  There has been no rain since early summer. It is a dangerous time.
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This has been a good 14 "transitions" days in the life of Grandma G.

"I have told you these things, so that in me [Jesus] you may have peace. In the world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world."  (John 16:33)