Wow, it has been time consuming setting up this new computer. Naturally, it is all plug 'n' play, and works great right out of the box, no issue with my existing speakers, monitor, printer. And stuff like Adobe is all pre-installed. All my web applications work fine. But downloading and installing all the little add-ons I had -- sound recording, photo editing, not to mention various suites of wordprocessors, spreadsheets, etc. -- or alternatively, finding the installation CDs  (yeah, right)...what a nightmare.

Anyway, I scanned this photo to be sure everything was working in that arena. I may have already scanned it at some point, but I don't remember posting it anywhere or saving it some place besides the hard drive of my late machine.

This is me in about 1977, when I was 16. I am at the park near my house. I remember the sweatshirt was red, the shirt was made by my mother out of muslin and its trim was in a red pattern, and the pants were painter's pants, so popular at that time. It was taken by a friend for photography class. It was posed, but wasn't supposed to look like it. It's a bittersweet photo, in the sense that my friend has had a hard life and our relationship has been complex. Both things were true even then.

She has been on my mind recently, and for more than her recent contact. It's because I am trying to navigate a current difficult situation, and that is making me run through all the challenging people I have had to deal with throughout my life, both personally and professionally, to see if I have any old tools in my toolbox that might come in handy.