Mississippi River Bridges at Natchez, Mississippi on Christmas Day, 2008

Long Ago and Far Away - Daddy and Joe Remondet

Long Ago and Far Away - Cee Tee Kelly

I've Had It Up to Here and I Just Won't Take it Anymore

Dear Mr. Hurd (CEO of Hewlett-Packard),

I spent two-and-a-half hours on the phone last night for the second time in a month because my printer/scanner will not work. It's still broken, a software problem, I'm told. Piyush in New Delhi had to get off the phone last night because he was going into overtime and has promised to call me back today.

I have this scanner because my last two did not work either. So I bought a recycled scanner, paid around $70 in order to talk with someone in New Delhi for as long as I like, and paid another $50 in order to get a new scanner delivered should this one break.

My HP laptop loses power because the place where you insert the cord is loose. I'd send it in, but HP wants $400 to fix it. So I'm backing up all my information to an online source, after which I'll probably dump the computer and the printer/scanner.

Or I could send it in to HP so that they can sell it to another schmuck as "recycled," thus ensuring Piyush job security in New Delhi.

I'm thoroughly disgusted. I have an article due today with photos I needed to scan to send in to my editor. I will miss this deadline. Thank you, HP, for all your help.

Sincerely,

Elodie Prichartt
loyal customer for 10 years

Hewlett-Packard Photosmart C5180 All-in-One Scanner/Printer

Echoes Gallery, Photographs by Lee England

I got a new job yesterday working at Echoes Gallery in Natchez, Mississippi. Echoes is owned by Dr. Lee England, who is a photographer extraordinaire. You can see and purchase more of his photos at www.englandphotographic.com.

Merry, merry.....

I used to lived in a house in California that just got the most gorgeous afternoon light. A couple of years ago, I was putting away the Christmas ornaments and just had to grab the camera to take some photos of them in that light.

Then I had an idea. Using graduated bowls with tape securing the bowls, I poured water into the space between the bowls, tucking some berries and leaves and small branches into the water and then stuck it in the freezer to freeze. When it was frozen, I removed the bowls and had a gorgeous ice bowl into which I put some of the Christmas ornaments.

I took pictures with the idea of making my own Christmas cards out of them. As the ice melted, the bowl became clear and some of the leaves peeked out of the ice. It made some interesting shots.

This year I finally made the cards. They're great, if I do say so, myself (and I do).