WHERE WOULD WE BE WITHOUT FRIENDS?

Thanks to every one who took time to lend a hand with yesterday's query. And, there were a lot of you.

Apologies to Michelle whose comment I somehow lost. Sometimes I  am certain there are little gnomes out in cyberspace that just mysteriously gobble up stuff. Michelle has been a cyber pal since I got started with using the internet to display my photography, about five years ago. She is a gifted painter and if you get a chance you should check out her work,  Michelle Basic Hendry. Michelle cast her vote for Skype.

After getting so much Skype feedback I jumped on the internet and went to the Skype website, paid my admission, downloaded the program and .... can't make it work. Everything went swimming well until I did the the call test.  Dialing out, connecting, video streaming and incoming sound all working perfectly. Problem is no one can hear me. Which some may appreciate. ;)

Naturally, Skype is one of those places where you are supposed to hunt all over the site and try and fix the problem for yourself. I gave it the old college try but was unable to find a fix. That's when I went to fellow photographer, dear friend and mentor Michal Daniel.  Michal, Misha to his friends, is a renown theatrical photographer. Check out this video to see his AMAZING PHOTOGRAPHY.

Misha is long time Skype user as well as OSX user. It was Misha who pushed me kicking and screaming into switching to Mac. One of many things I will be eternally grateful to him for. We spent at least an hour trying everything he could think of, still no luck.

I also got a lot of feedback from my pals at Silicon Investor where I have been a member for nearly 15 years. A great bunch of guys there. And I do mean guys. In my nearly 15 years as a member I've only run across a few gals. A great bunch of guys but they take no hostages.

I called Apple Care and confirmed everything on my end was working properly. Then I went back to Skype and dug around until I found a place where I could at least send an e-mail to tech support. I sent them a message outlining all the things I had done. A few hours later I got a reply telling me to do all the things I had already done. I replied I had tried all those things and am now awaiting the next phase of this adventure.

If I get it figured out, and I'm pretty determined, I will let you know in case you ever find yourself in a similar situation.

Thanks again everyone.!

©Kinsey Barnard

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

As another year draws to a close I can look back and say, with conviction, it was a wonderful year. I attribute that primarily to my being able to live here in the Kootenai Forest in Montana. I am rich beyond measure because I am surrounded by such incredible and exquisite natural beauty. Every day is a new adventure. None of it costs me a thing.

My wish for my friends and fans is that you find peace, health and happiness in the coming year. No matter where you live there is natural beauty to be found if you but look for it. Seek out beauty and let it fill your senses. That is Mother Nature's perpetual gift to you. Accept the gift!

I hope to be able to provide new and beautiful nature photographs for your enjoyment. Maybe a good story or two. And, of course, a few opinions on things.

I have made some wonderful friends through this blog. I value friendship greatly. Of all the photos I have taken the one below is the one that most touches my heart when I think of friends and friendship. Lets all look back over our shoulders for those who may need a helping hand. Let's touch noses and show our support for one another in the coming year!



Once again HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!

©Kinsey Barnard Photography

COUNTRY ROADS TAKE ME HOME

At last we are headed home! Mom is driving me nuts though because she cannot stop singing Country Roads and you outta hear her try and carry a tune! John Denver would have a heart attack. But, it's ok because my mountain mama is taking me home.

First I want to say how much we enjoyed our time in Florence and appreciate the new friends that we made. There was Paulie at the Pacific Pines RV park. If you are RV'ing through Florence, I highly recommend this park. It's like a home away from home for us now. Thank you Paulie!

Then there were Glen & Keith at the Dunham RV Service Center. These two guys were princes to work with and treated my mom really well and did great work. Believe me some of these RV places treat people like last weeks lunch. Thank you guys!

And a great big thanks to Virgie, Bill and Patrick at the Bill Roberts sign shop. They were the ones that did the sign work on Clementine and Shadow and made me look so handsome. Well, really they had a lot to work with! :)

And, last but certainly not least thank you to my friend Buddy. The little runt is a weenie dog and he bit me! Can you imagine? :) And a VERY special thanks to Buddy's mother Marilyn who drove us all over the place. It's that "blowing the coat" time of year and I left an incredible deposit of hair in the back of her SUV. She was extremely gracious about it! You don't know what shedding is until you see a husky blow its coat!

We left Florence a little late in the day and only got as far as The Locks along the Columbia River. We are headed for Spokane where we will wait for good weather and clear roads. Since our ranch is at nearly 4,000 ft. we may not be able to get all the way home. But, I don't care. We are headed in the right direction!

©Kinsey Barnard Photography