Not happy with Flickr . . .

Regarding flickr, I've had a handful of people kind of admonish me for my little protest. Cool. I'm open to being admonished. I put it out there so I can take the heat. But, I have another way to explain my protest for many of their recent changes.

Most of us lock the doors to our house when we leave, even if we rent our house or apartment and don't own it. I bet almost all of you lock your doors or lock your car. Yes, if a thief wants to get in our house or car and steal our stuff, they can find a way in around your locked doors. We live in the illusion that our stuff is safe and are comforted by locking the doors.

What flickr has done with it's new slideshow, the new layout that leaves image credits and copyright info off the screen unless the viewer clicks on the picture and scrolls down below the screen to read it, and their new resolution quality is like someone, even a landlord, replacing your old doors with paper ones without asking, virtually overnight. They made it that much easier to break in. So for each of us, it is a personal decision whether to be okay with paper doors because we are okay with living outside the illusion, or move somewhere with something that at least feels a little stronger, like flickr used to.

Most of us would be a bit distressed if our car was stolen (because we need it to get to work and go to the grocery and the doctor, etc. and it cost us a lot of money) or our jewelry (because it has financial and emotional value to us). Imagine it being stolen every few weeks. Could you afford to keep buying new ones? Piracy culprits and misinformed would-be-artists that think everything is up for grabs steal millions of dollars worth of images from artists, photographers, and designers every year for sure, maybe every few months, I don't know. It affects someone's bottom line, someone's ability to earn a living - I'm sure I've had several cars' worth and wedding rings' worth of images stolen from me over the years. But I limp along. My concern is not with just my own artwork, but my customers' artwork and their possible use of my images in their work being posted on Flickr. So, no, I don't feel compelled to condone, let alone support, be okay with, use, or pay for a service like Flickr that just made it easier to steal from not just me, but the 100's of working artists, photographers and designers I know (whether or not they are my customers) and the 1000's that I don't. 

Sites like Flickr and Tumblr make money on the artsists' backs and disregard their rights or do very little, if anything, to protect and promote the artists that provide the content they need to be in business. The one thing Pinterest does right is to encourage direct linking to the artist/creator. That will likely be my new "flickr" - the audience is bigger anyway.   (By the way, I try very hard to not pin or repin items on Pinterest that come from Tumblr since Tumblr does not link to the original artist and often leaves off the artist information entirely.)

I renewed my Pro Account in January. I have paid for an account there for the last 6 years. I have sent countless customers to them. Flickr was one thing when many of us started accounts there and they just became something else overnight. They had every right to do so. I have every right to say I don't like it. You have every right to be okay with it and think I'm a fool. Maybe I will find a new career. Maybe I will evolve to think differently tomorrow or next year. But for now, this is where I am.

Remembering . . .

This, I think, is always my favorite time of year . . . that little happy time between Spring and Summer.  The anticipation of vacations, longer days, warmer temps, less bulky clothing, and soaking up some Vitamin D is as good as the anticipation of opening presents at Christmas, maybe better.   Sprinkled with graduations and last days of school, I am taken back to the sheer euphoria of my own last days of school as a kid.  There is nothing quite like the feeling of freedom to enjoy the coming summer and the sense of accomplishment with another year of school over.  I hope your days are filled with these kinds of thoughts as we see summer peeking over the horizon.

For most of my childhood, my family spent Memorial Day weekend in the country hills near my grandparents' homes in southern Missouri.   Some years my brother, Mom, Dad and I would drive 12-17 hours (depending on where we lived at the time) straight through to get to Granny's house on time.  It was always the start of vacation for my family.  We would spend the first weekend, Memorial Day weekend, gathering up silk and plastic flowers at the temporary shops popping up just for the holiday. The shopping was always done by us ladies.   On Memorial Day, the whole family packed the car up with a picnic and the bushels of flowers and drove from one old hidden cemetery to another to visit the graves of family going generations back.  I would listen closely as my parents and grandparents told each other stories and remembered those that had passed on.  I delighted in helping to choose the flowers I thought were appropriate for each person based on the stories I heard about them.  Purple and pink, my favorite colors in my young years, were saved for the girls and ladies I thought.  Red, yellow, and blue for the men, many veterans.  And I saved the white flowers for those I thought didn't sound very nice because it was my least favorite flower color.   Even then I was fascinated by the headstones, running my fingers over the names and dates and added words someone chose to represent their loved ones.  I remember, very rarely, there would be a headstone with a picture of the person on it somehow and now, so many years later, I can't remember how that would be.  I don't remember if it was a photograph under glass or etched in somehow, but I remember being enthralled with it.

Now, as an adult I've wondered why in the South there is this rich tradition of decorating all graves, not just those who died in our nation's service.  I've had a hard time finding a lot of information on it, but I believe it used to be called Decoration Day and was a day set aside for family members to visit, clean up, and decorate the graves of family members and friends at the start of summer.  In 1868, Decoration Day was replaced with Memorial Day and became a day of national recognition for those who sacrificed their lives for our nation.  I think that old Decoration Day tradition is just still also observed by certain regions without much discussion of why or when it started or how it transformed over the years.

So, I head into this weekend with just a twinge of sadness pulling on my heart.  My brother and I are all that is left of our family and we live 1800 miles away now.  I am sad that no little girl is there to carefully choose flowers for my parent's graves or that family members will not enjoy a picnic nearby and tell stories of my grandparents.   I am sad that their graves will be undecorated and appear forgotten to some that might pass by.  In my mind, I have placed flowers there a hundred times in the years since they passed.  I hope they can see them from heaven.  Pink and purple for the ladies.  Red, yellow, and blue for the men.  And no white for anybody.

Every Now & Then
copyright Marsha Jorgensen 5/16/2013. All rights reserved.
Digital visual journaling. Image credits: Tumble Fish Studio kits including Melies-ish, Once Upon a Time, City Skies, Celestial Journal Cards, Journaling Pieces 1 & 2, Jiant Journaling Mix.

On to happier summer thoughts . . . 
If you haven't already, you need to check out Artful Gathering.  The two summer sessions of online classes are just the bee's knees and a great way to treat yourself to creative vacations all summer long.  Registration is open for both sessions so head on over and check things out from Pam Carriker, Keith Lo Bue, Pamela Huntington, and many more including my personal favorite Mary Jane Chadbourne!  (pictures are linked to the site)

Pink Kit Winners

Good Monday morning!  Last week was eventful around here to say the least.
The party was a huge and wonderful success at Deviant Scrap.  I had one eye on all of the fun there and one eye on the scary, also huge, fire in Southern California.  The Springs fire, which burned over 44 square miles, was burning in an area I lived in for 15 years before moving where I am now 4 years ago.   It is an area about 50 miles east of me now but I have many many friends in the area.  It was surreal to see my old stomping grounds on the news, including the school where I worked for 7 years and the mountains I had hiked many times with friends.   Many friends had to evacuate their homes and the fire has been devastating to one of the last pristine wilderness areas around Los Angeles.   It is raining in SoCal today, 0 homes have been destroyed so far, and the fire is now 80% contained but last week, the fire consumed the news here and the thoughts and prayers of those with connections to the area.

(photo of life returning to the burn area via the Ventura County Fire Department)


Pink Kit Winners
Well, last week I announced a prize drawing for my new pink kit coming out very soon.  The kit is still being put together but should release in the next week or so.  Two lucky commenters on that post were drawn to win that kit.  Names were numbered in the order the comments were posted and the Random Number Generator was used to draw the winners.  And the winners are . . .

Pamela Romero

Michelle in MI

(Winners, if you'll email me at marsha@tumblefishstudio.com, I'll be in contact you with how to get your Pink kit!)

As for the games and challenges winners at Deviant Scrap, the winners were drawn and announced HERE in the Deviant Scrap forum.

There is always something fun going on at Deviant Scrap and almost all new kits release with a sale price for a limited time.  I hope you will continue to visit Deviant Scrap all summer for kits on sale, new releases, specials, challenges, swaps, tutorials, and freebies!

In case you need a little pick me up after last week's marathon celebration at Deviant Scrap . . .

(picture above is linked to one last party game over at DeviantScrap.com)

Today's the Day!

It's May Day!  It's the 121st day of the year leaving you about 236 days to do your Christmas shopping.   It's International Labor Day meaning some of your friends around the world have the day off from work. 

AND . . . Today is the day that registration begins for Artful Gathering classes!  Let the fun begin!  Take a peek and sign up to try something new from the comfort of your own home . . . no expensive travel, you can work in your pajamas, and you can fit it in your day where it works best.  C'mon, you know you're itchin to try something new!  (picture below is linked to Artful Gathering)

My friend Mary Jane Chadbourne is teaching a class that even uses a special Tumble Fish Studio kit!  I cannot wait to try this out myself!

Speaking of Tumble Fish Studio kits . . . don't forget to enter the drawing for my new Pink kit coming out very soon.   You can find out more information in the post below this one.  

Get your party on!
The party continues all week at Deviant Scrap!   It's our semi-annual extravaganza . . . HUGE savings, TONS of prizes, challenges, and games!   You really need to take a minute and to check it all out because it only happens twice a year and the savings are just too big to be missed! (Picture below is linked to my shoppe but you can find the games and challenges HERE)

Here's just one of the many games we have going . . . if you're into Pinterest, this game was made for you!

Well, I hope you have a lovely May Day, however you choose to celebrate!  Perhaps start your Christmas shopping?