xcheck's sin bin

[xcheck24]

I should probably change my avatar since Dru is no longer a Ranger.

[xcheck24]

Spooky time.

I was out at Silver Sands Beach in Connecticut yesterday shooting photos between the raindrops. The beach has a sandbar that extends to Charles Island, and the sandbar is only there during low tide. High tide rolls in, you can get stuck or even swept away. I took photos of the signs, etc. yesterday.

Someone was swept away today and died in the water.

Story: http://www.ctpost.com/news/article/Body ... 452091.php

Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenconnic/ ... 992855315/

[xcheck24]

So it's been an eventful few days here in Jersey. The flooding on the Passaic River actually isn't far from where I live. Like a block or two away. I actually left before the hurricane (came back today) to avoid the potential for flooding in my neighborhood. The river has yet to crest, but we're good here. The river is not going to rise to the point where it threatens us.

[JillStar]

Glad to hear you're safe!! It's amazing how many "internet" people I know who were affected in some way or another. I'm clear out here in Idaho... if it weren't for the news, we would never know.

[xcheck24]

This was last night at 7 p.m.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenconnic/ ... 558244168/

That's a block from where I live two hours before the river crested. The river is right on the other side of the road across from my street. When the river crested, some water came into the street. But it never crossed the street to my street. Thank God.

I feel very thankful.

[JillStar]

No kidding... that is close!! Glad to hear you're alright.

[xcheck24]

If you don't follow my blog, I wrote a bit about the Foo Fighters concert the other night.
http://jenconnic.wordpress.com/2011/09/ ... -fighters/

[xcheck24]

So...I've been dating this guy for a little bit now that I really, really care about (although we don't use the terms boyfriend and girlfriend for each other). OK, I love the guy.

But this fall has been awful. He was on the road for three out of four weeks, and the one week he was home I was in California. And then he finally gets home, and this BS with his ex-whateversheis pulls some BS and now he's embroiled in this custody issue to the point where we can't even talk to each other.

It never is easy...I've had Pat Benatar in my head all day because one of my friends quoted Love is a Battlefield about this. lol

[xcheck24]

Oh and these are my photos from California:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenconnic/ ... 888452146/

[xcheck24]

Need people to vote for my photo portfolio:
http://jenconnic.artistswanted.org/exposure2011

[xcheck24]

If Charles hadn't pointed out that there's a party on the forum, I wouldn't have checked in to see all the activity around here lately. lol

I just realized that my 9th anniversary of joining WT was last week. That's outrageous! Nine years!

And while this forum can be very, very quiet at times, I'm happy for some of the connections it's helped me form. I wouldn't be able to call Charles my cyber sibling if it wasn't for this forum.

So this is what's been happening with me:

I work more in the realm of social media these days at a different job. I still get to do little bits of journalism, but it's more through others. I have a love-hate relationship with this work.

I have been working to get better mentally. And this is a much, much longer story.

In the fall of 2011 I went back into the care of a psychiatrist as I slid back down the hill into depression. It was bad. And I was fine for a long while, but then I hit another roadblock last fall, right around the time Sandy hit this area of the country (was a rough time for work too...the only time I worked more hours was in the days after Sept. 11).

But my doctors (yes, two of them) have helped me identify some problems, including vitamin deficiencies, and I've got all sorts of fun pills to take and I'm on a much better road. I like to say I'm not perfect but a much better imperfect.

And I write about this stuff over here: https://thedepressionproject.wordpress.com/

We're not going to even TOUCH my romantic interludes with a 10 foot pole.

[JillStar]

Oh wow... after I read what you wrote above I realized that I also joined nine years ago. Wow... am I old now!!

Sounds like you've gone through a lot... it's amazing to me how much can happen in a short period of time and then how much doesn't happen at all over a long period of time. I hope you continue to do well.

I am not on WT very much any more and it seems everyone drifted away. It's sad but it's what happens especially in on-line communities. I am baffled that nine years has come and gone and yet when I visit, it feels like it's been a short time as well. One thing that's nice is that when people do come back together, if the orignial feelings of friendship were strong in the past, it's easy to get it going again.

[Anblick]

Looks like I also crossed the nine year mark recently...

But it looks at least like some aspects of the site are starting to get slightly active again...

[xcheck24]

It's nice to see the site a little active again.

I have to admit my writing life has not been the greatest in the world these days.

[xcheck24]

You know, I just was thinking about my life when I joined this site and all that's happened since then.

I joined WT the weekend "the boy" was off doing something with his brother. Since then, he and I broke up, I went to graduate school, I moved to New Jersey, I've had a few jobs, I was featured in Newsweek, I had to buy a new car...It's a lot of stuff.

[Anblick]

Yeah, my life has had a slight change, too...

I actually met my soul mate, got married to her, adopted her oldest son, fathered two daughters, stopped getting drunk, retired from the military, got a second career doing the same thing I did in the military for a lot more money than I made while in, bought my first house, and actually decided I wanted to publish stuff.

It looks like most of your changes have been (ultimately) happy ones, though they might not have been so happy during the turmoil of the change.

Here's to more happy changes for everyone!