Sunrise. I’ve learned you have to quickly get the camera or all the gorgeous colors will fade in the blink of an eye.

The same goes for pretty cloud formations.

Everything changes, minute by minute, second by second. A camera gives you the chance to capture a moment in time before it’s gone forever. It’s a reminder to live in the moment. Something so simple but so hard to do, don’t you agree?

Thank you for all your wonderful comments on my most recent posts. Well, thank you for your comments on every post. But lately, there have been some wonderful, thought provoking ideas shared on this old blog and I’m extremely grateful for them. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts, your experiences, your views. Sometimes, all it takes is reading about another point of view to turn my perceptions around in a different direction. I may not always agree with you, you may not always agree with me, but the dialogue is the important thing. I love the conversation. I’ll go even further: I thrive on it. So thanks and thanks again, my friends.

Every once in a while I get an email asking about BlogHer ads and the process of applying for them. You have to go to this link and fill out an application. It’s not enough to register on BlogHer’s site.

As far as the approval process, I’ve heard about some bloggers waiting for up to two years for approval, some are approved in a few days and others, like me, wait for about a month and a half. BlogHer has a finite number of blogs that are part of the Advertising Network. I imagine, though I don’t know this for sure, if they are full up, you might not hear anything for a long while. If there are openings, things might move more quickly. I do know that BlogHer chooses all kinds of blogs; big, small and in-between.

If you are interested, I urge you to apply. But prepare yourself for a wait. I think BlogHer is fantastic and their customer service is the best. They have been nothing but supportive and there for me when I’ve had a question. And they really do a great job of highlighting our posts and our blogs.

Do you know that BlogHer has their conference in NYC this year? Since I live so close to the city, it would be wonderful to take part in it. But I can’t really afford the registration fee. So when they issued a call for volunteers I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to attend the conference, help out wherever needed, and save money on the fees. I applied. To my disappointment, I got an email yesterday saying I wasn’t chosen. There were a lot of applicants. I’m bummed.

I also submitted an idea for a panel discussion. I thought there should be a panel about bloggers who are 45+ years of age. There’s a whole lot of us out there. We are consumers. We have life experience. We know a lot. And I think we’re sometimes a tad marginalized in the blogging world, just like in the real world. 30-something bloggers and mommy bloggers are everywhere. And I say, good for them! But we’re here, too. And we have much to contribute. It would be nice to take part in something that spotlights us – our challenges, our blogging audience. I often look at photos from these conferences and see a sea of young faces. Here and there, I might see a ‘seasoned’ blogger, but for the most part, I don’t.  Maybe it depends on whose taking the pictures.

Anyway. I heard back from BlogHer. They passed.

Who knows? There may already be a panel scheduled to discuss this topic. Maybe there has been a panel about just this thing at previous conferences. Most likely, my presentation wasn’t strong enough. That’s my fault.

Do you remember being younger and looking at people who were in their forties or fifties, thinking they must be dull and old? I do. I now realize what my parents and elders felt when they were my age. I may be in my fifties, but I’m smart, savvy and still very hip, if I do say so myself. I have a lot to contribute. I’ve learned a lot in my lifetime. In fact, I’m full of ideas and am more vital than ever.

Take heed, world. We’re out there and we’re creative, smart and strong.

And now for a little Etsy advertising:

This is the latest scarf. The yarn is made of silk and bamboo. I think these are perfect for the warmer months because they are so soft and silky to the touch and they aren’t made out of wool. I wear these scarves with a T-shirt and jeans all year round. I’ve already decided to make another one in this color for me. Update: Sold.

Love to you all on this Wednesday morning.