I haven’t made any New Year’s resolutions in years. I never kept them anyway, so I figured why bother. This year I’m making one though, one I feel compelled to keep.

I’ve yet to really get a handle on how to support myself with these blogs I do. I’ve tried different things — some show promise, others are a waste of time and effort. I’ve made many false starts, made many mistakes, and I’ve missed some opportunities simply through my own ignorance and utter lack of business skills. That needs to change.

So… within a couple of months I will be bringing in some income. Before the year is out I will be a fully independent, self-supporting photographer/blogger. A tall order? Of course. Difficult? Absolutely, but seeing how things are going in these tough economic times I don’t think it’s any more difficult than trying to land a job that will actually support me. Once I reach that point it will be a lot more secure too.

By this time next year, if not sooner, I intend to make a trip to Montana to re-establish myself there. Then I can spend some time going back and forth, spending some time here in LA with my daughter and spending some time in Montana. Her and I can also do some exploring between here and there. There’s a lot of ‘west’ to get to know.

When she graduates high school and goes off to college I can move myself back to Montana for good. Once I do that it will take a couple of D-9 Cats and a truckload of dynamite to move me again.

So yes, it’s a tall order but a worthy goal. I’d better get busy… I have a lot to do.

Stay tuned, and Happy New Year.

pj

One thing that strikes me about photography blogging, and the community and friendships that grow out of it, is that age plays no part. Unless someone actually states their age it’s unknown, and nobody cares.

A few of us are sixty somethings, a few are fifty somethings or forty somethings. Probably the majority of bloggers are in their twenties or thirties, but I wouldn’t bet a paycheck on that even if I had one. A few are even in their teens.

None of that matters, and that’s cool. There’s a lot more exchanging of thoughts and ideas, a lot more give and take between generations going on in the blogs than there is out on the streets. How often do you see fifty year olds hanging out with twenty or thirty year olds in your day to day life? Not often. Humans tend to herd up by age group and lifestyle in the every day world, but far less so in the blogs.

I think that’s a great thing. I learn a lot from those younger than I am.