Christmas Vacation and a New Year's Challenge

Every year (for seven years now) we have spent the week after Christmas at Boy Scout Winter Camp. Sleeping in tents with temperatures sometimes below freezing... doesn't that sound like fun? The last two years, we have opted to commute so we could enjoy hot showers and warm beds every night.

Our current job at camp is to run the Trading Post. This is the place where people come to visit, warm up, shop, and spend every dollar they brought. We sell items ranging from shampoo and hand warmers to souveneir shirts and patches. The most popular item is always knives. No surprise there. 

This year I had a wonderful staff (3 adults and 2 teenagers) who dealt with the mad rush of kids each time we opened our doors - locating products, answering questions, changing all those first day $20 bills - and made it look effortless. I was also charged with managing the Snack Shack, and was lucky to have 3 great teenagers who efficiently (and with very little supervision) sold assorted snacks and drinks to the eager crowds of campers.

We did really well this year. By the last full day of camp, the Snack Shack was sold out and the Trading Post inventory list had gotten significantly shorter.  We were able to complete our last day inventory in record time.  

People ask why we keep coming back to work (volunteer) at Winter Camp every year and my answer is that it's fun. I'll choose Winter Camp over after-Christmas shopping every time! We always have a great time, and we are already making plans for next year... or should I say this year?  :)



Stormie contemplates Christmas

Speaking of this year...

In honor of 2011, I've decided to try something new. I have joined in MCP Project 52, where I will submit 52 photos based on a weekly theme. I'm a little shy about sharing my work, but this seems like a good opportunity for me to get to know my new camera (one of my New Year's goals) and the challenge will (hopefully) encourage me to try new things. The first weekly theme is Something Around the House, and this is the photo I submitted. There are eight cats in our household, so I thought it was quite appropriate. 

I'm looking forward to the weekly challenges and will also share my photos here. Won't you join me?

Goals for 2011

I have given up on New Year's resolutions. I mean, how many times can you resolve (and fail) to lose weight, find the perfect job, etc., before you finally admit that the whole resolutions thing isn't working? 

This year, I have decided to set goals, instead.

1) Become a healthier person. Eat less junk food and make time for exercise.
2) Make my home comfortable. Continue removing the anxiety-causing clutter. Work on one small area at a time until the whole house is done. (No, my house does not look anything like those on Hoarders, but there is enough random stuff sitting around that it makes me uncomfortable.) I plan to celebrate reaching this goal with new paint for the walls.
3) Learn how to correctly use all the features on my new camera. Then take some pictures that are worthy of framing and hanging on those newly painted walls.

That's it, just three goals. I'm hoping that at this time next year, I can look back and say that I reached my goals. 

An update on my 52 Organizing Missions...

#36 Organize Your Paperwork - I usually stay pretty organized with paperwork. During Christmas vacation, I cleaned out my overstuffed file cabinet. Now my file cabinet is neat and I can easily file my bills and statements.

#37 Organize Your Diet - This one is harder. I've set the goal of eating healthier (less junk food), but eliminating it completely would take it away from the other people in my household, so I will just have to use will power. I do plan to incorporate more fresh fruits and vegetables in our diet and will try to cook meals from scratch as much as possible.

Believe it or not, I am caught up on the missions!  Never thought that would happen after last summer.  :)  I will continue to do my best to keep up with these weekly missions as I work toward my goals for 2011.

Celebrating the New Year

We haven't gone out for New Year's Eve in years, and this year was no different. We stayed home, the three of us sitting in separate rooms playing on our computers. Just before midnight, we came together for a glass of chocolate wine - something new this year, and quite good. We toasted the New Year and then went back to our respective computers to serve the gaming addiction before heading off to bed.

I gave up on New Year's resolutions years ago, but I am setting some goals this year. One goal is to declutter every room in my house. I started a few months ago - choosing one small area to work on each day. Today, I made some really good progress. I finished up Winter Camp paperwork, handled the e-mails that accumulated while I was away at Winter Camp (more on camp later), sorted out t-shirts for donation, cleared out old files, and I even got to sleep late!

I have two more days before I go back to work, and I hope to get a lot more done. Oh, and maybe relax a little, too.

Picture This

Photography has always been a hobby for me. When I was in high school, I bought a Canon AE-1 and carried it around with me everywhere. I photographed people, animals, flowers, buildings, hot air balloons, and just about anything else I saw.

I loved taking pictures. But film and developing were expensive and I didn't have a darkroom, so I was limited.

And then there was digital.   *cue choir*

Several years ago, we bought a digital camera for the family. The Kodak EasyShare - a simple point and shoot camera that was easy to use and took nice pictures.  Best of all, no film and no developing. I could take as many pictures as I wanted (until the memory card was full) and delete those that I didn't like. It was nice, but I wasn't completely satisfied.

I started looking at the high-end digital SLR cameras. This was what I really wanted, but I wasn't ready to spend that much money. So I waited.

My next camera purchase was a Pentax W90. This is my "activity" camera. We do a lot of camping and backpacking, so resistance to water, shock and dust are important.  The Pentax has a lot of great features and takes really good pictures. I found myself getting hooked on my old hobby again.

The siren song of the digital SLR's got louder. 

And then I got the most wonderful news... our company was paying Christmas bonuses this year. I could finally get my new camera.  I debated the features of the Canon (my old favorite) versus the Nikon.  I polled my friends for their recommendations. I talked to professional photographers.  And I made my decision.

My new Nikon D90 is on its way and should be here in time for Christmas.

And I can't wait!

______________________

The latest update on my 52 Organizing Missions:

#35 Set "Yes" Priorities - This will be ongoing. I know my priorities and I will consider each commitment (before I make it) to make sure it contributes to my priorities.

#34 Donate 50 Things - I have a garbage bag full of clothes and a box of miscellaneous items that are going to the thrift store this week.  :)

#33 Organize Your E-Mail Management - I deleted old e-mails (on all accounts) and unsubscribed from a bunch of newsletters that I have no interest in reading.

I'm more than half-way through this project, and I can see a definite improvement. This has really helped me get back to being a calm, organized person.