Wet Dog Syndrome (& about those ads)

Lately I'm reminded of the song from Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day ...

...and the rain, rain, rain
came down, down, down...

It seems relentless and unending. This is the 3rd week in a row of flooding rain for us here in New England.

When you have ducks in your backyard where you don't usually even have a pond, then you know it's been raining, a LOT!

Lily is not a fan.
She especially hates being toweled down. Hates it. She runs through the house like a madwoman trying to escape my advances.

The rain does nothing for her hairdo. At least she's clean so she doesn't smell. My husband might beg to differ.

These are good days for her to take long naps, basically because there's not much else to do. No going outside to take walks or play ball or even chase Winston. All she can do is follow me from room to room, staying on my heels at every turn. Sometimes she helps me wash the dishes.

Winston is quite skeptical of the rain as well, preferring to do his business inside if he can get away with it. You dirty dog, Winston. Yeah, you!

Come the end of the week it will all be just a bad memory, and a lot of mud. Upper 60's on Thursday, 70's on Friday, and 80+ on Saturday! I can only hope the weatherman has it right. The flowers and birds are hoping the same thing!

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I wanted to take a moment and discuss the BlogHer ads that I've added to my blog. I know it's not a popular decision with some people, but, it's a decision I made based on what was right for me and my family.

First of all I didn't put the ads on my page for greed. I'm an interior painter who's been unemployed for 2 months and in a dual income family we are feeling the pinch. Second, after 26 years with the same company we thought my husband could possibly lose his job this month. Plus my older daughter had a minor car accident, and my younger daughter had braces put on. Oy Vey! It's been a stress filled month to say the least! I'm sure you've all been there! So far it appears my husbands job will remain intact, and I actually have a little work on the horizon, provided it doesn't fall through like previous jobs have. Damn this economy!

So often I hear people say I should sell my photos or be a photographer. Thank you so much for the positive words! Your feedback on my progress means the world to me! I tried selling my photos on Etsy. Not a lot of action. And though my photos might look good in the cyberworld, my camera is not good enough for professional use. Therefore putting ads on my page is sort of a compromise. It might give me a little reward for my work but won't cost anyone else a penny. You don't even have to click on the ads, it's mostly based on page impression.

One condition I had when I put the ads on my blog was that I would not compromise the size of my photos. I like the larger format and I believe my viewers do too. I understand if some people are put off by the advertisements but BlogHers ads seem to be pretty tasteful and I didn't go overboard with multiple ads, even though they give me that choice. To be eligible for BlogHer ads I had to fill out an application and be accepted into their program. Though they aren't accepting general applications they liked my blog and felt we'd make a good match.

Just one more thing. I think most (though not necessarily all) women who have ads on their page are doing it for the same reason, they love blogging, spend a lot of time doing building a following, and have worked hard to maintain it. If they can reap a small reward for that hard work then so be it. It's their choice.

I know, I don't usually ramble on and on like this and hopefully I haven't put my foot in my mouth like I tend to do in these situations. I appreciate any feedback you can give me. If you don't feel comfortable leaving a comment, you may email me instead. sharon01@comcast.net

Thank you,
Sharon